Quality drinking water questioned

The quality of water, used to make drinking water suffers from the changing climate, announced the Netherlands National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) Tuesday. The changing climate causes dry spells in the Netherlands. The Netherlands produces about 40 percent of its drinking water from surface water.

Droughts cause less water to flow through the rivers, which increases pollution concentration from waste water discharge. The RIVM suggests several options to counteract the effects. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment is aware of the necessity of additional measures and uses the RIVM-report for development of its policy for the next few years. "To keep costs down, the ministry will adapt its policy to the actual climate changes," said a spokesperson for the Ministry.