The average water consumption per Swiss person is 170 l per day *. This drinking water is used for everyday things like cooking, washing and of course drinking. This drinking water from the tap must be free of pathogenic germs and must not pose a risk to people or technical systems. In the whole of Switzerland (including its large cities such as Zurich, Geneva, Basel, Bern, Lausanne, Winterthur, Lucerne, Biel, Lugano, St. Gallen, Aarau) well over 2000 water suppliers supply the population with drinking water.
Even if various problems are repeatedly dealt with in the media, such as pesticides, insufficient protection, hygiene indicators, legionella, nitrate, the general water quality is very high. For this, the water can often be used without major treatments, which is promoted by the different sources. If reprocessing is necessary, chlorine, UV radiation or filtrations, among other things, are sometimes used.
Despite all the challenges that suppliers face in terms of water quality in Switzerland, the most common causes of contaminated or polluted tap water are often in the water pipes of the objects concerned and are therefore not the responsibility of the supplier.
Further information (in German):
SVGW: Trinkwasser – Hausinstallationen
Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft: Verordnung des EDI über Trinkwasser […]
Naturwissenschaften.ch: Wassernutzung und -verbrauch*