Changes to the Drinking Water Ordinance - In BAV Newsletter 05/2015

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Jun 16, 2017 - Water

Changes to the Drinking Water Ordinance - In BAV Newsletter 05/2015

The Federal Council has approved the 3rd Ordinance amending the Drinking Water Ordinance. This ordinance implements EU Directive 2013/51/EURATOM into national law. In the future, drinking water will be examined and monitored for radioactive substances (radon, tritium). Affected are water suppliers and food companies with their own wells. In Germany, it is assumed that the contamination by radioactive substances is very low. For this reason, an initial investigation with a screening over all source areas will first be conducted (about 9,000 central waterworks are planned; smaller decentralized waterworks could also be affected in risk areas). Based on these results, risk assessments will be carried out by the local monitoring authorities, who will then decide whether and to what extent future periodic investigations will be necessary. (Source: EU Directive Draft Amendment TwVo Amendment Ordinance)