This is an explosive issue, as only 50 foreign substances or pollutants in tap water are tested at all.
This does not include pollutants such as microplastics. There are also no generally accepted limits for them, even though microplastics, like aluminum, can penetrate the brain and cause serious illnesses.
There are currently more than 3,000 known harmful substances in water. One of the reasons for this is that the producers of pesticides, herbicides and fungicides used in agriculture often do not provide any information on the content of their products. This makes it almost impossible for laboratories to identify the harmful substances used. There is nothing they can do.
This could be compared to doping in sport, for example, where various manufacturers are constantly looking for new ways to circumvent the bans. The case of glyphosate is a good example of this. If one substance is banned, another will simply be used. It works the same way with plastic. If it is PLA-free, it contains PLS or other harmful substances that are just as damaging.
If you look at it from another angle: even with a blood test, a laboratory receives precise instructions from the doctor as to what is to be tested. Without a specific order, the laboratory cannot determine whether a patient has a vitamin deficiency or HIV.
It is not uncommon for limit values to be exceeded for substances that are regularly monitored. This also leads to an unsatisfactory political discussion, as it is claimed that it is still safe. These values are also constantly corrected upwards so that exceedances are not too noticeable.
Consequently, the question should be asked to what extent these limit values are justifiable at all. A Scandinavian nitrate study was able to prove a connection between the nitrate concentration in water and bowel cancer.
Wastewater treatment plants do not know how to remove drug residues. This applies in particular to preparations for chemotherapy, antibiotics, painkillers, birth control pills, but also cleaning agents and disinfectants.
The operating principle of wastewater treatment plants is based on the fact that various microorganisms filter the wastewater. These are usually bacteria that are extremely useful. Accordingly, bacteria cannot process antibiotics efficiently, as these were developed to eliminate bacteria and remain resistant.
You only know what you know and understand. This also applies to water tests, because the unknown cannot be identified. In this sense, many laboratories are also at a loss, as they no longer have any idea what is to be tested.
Political decision-makers are more than aware of this problem, which is also reported on in various critical magazines such as K-Tipp. But despite all this, it is not being tackled seriously enough, because a serious debate would ruin the national budget. It would also have overly serious consequences. This is precisely why the SVGW claims that everyone is responsible for themselves.
For this reason, the water is chlorinated abroad to ensure that there are no more harmful substances in the water.
Two other sectors need to be discussed in this context, although it is very often assumed that they have nothing to do with pollutants and chemicals - construction and industry. Here, too, the tracking of substances used proves to be very difficult and non-transparent. The laboratories are dependent on the manufacturers, who do not always declare everything that their products contain.
Pipelines are also increasingly problematic. This is the so-called "last mile", as additional harmful substances are added to the water from the pipes, such as copper, lead, cement, etc.
Around 2000, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH ) examined the uranium content in drinking water as part of a nationwide scientific study. Higher uranium levels were discovered in the Alps in particular. This has to do with the fact that the water there is obtained from springs that come into contact with uranium-containing rocks.
Air and floods pose risks to water purity. This also transports many pollutants. Not to mention faecal germs.
Ancient underground pollutants have a strong influence on the quality of our water. Hazardous waste and nuclear waste repositories are just a few examples of this.
From all this we can conclude that our existence is hardly possible without beneficial bacteria and viruses. We very often tend to be overly clean and hygienic. However, our environment is full of pollutants that we often produce ourselves. It is therefore more than necessary to keep water as pure as possible and to treat this important means of transportation and cleansing in our bodies with respect.
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