Quality of drinking water in Scotland '˜among best in the world'

The quality of public drinking water supplies in Scotland remains amongst the highest in the world, a report has found.

Glencorse reservoir in Midlothian. Picture: Phil Wilkinson/TSPL

In its annual report published today, the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland said that 99.91 per cent of samples passed stringent water quality tests.

Scottish Water analyses samples of drinking water from across Scotland 365 days a year. A total of 311,560 regulatory tests were carried out on Scotland’s drinking water in 2016.

Of those taken from samples at consumers’ taps, 99.91 per cent met required standards - a similar level to last year, and a significant improvement on 2002, the year Scottish Water was formed, when only 99.28 per cent of tests complied.

Sue Petch, the Drinking Water Quality Regulator, said: “Consumers can be confident that when they turn on the tap, the product they receive meets some of the strictest water quality standards in the world. I am also pleased to report that the service consumers receive from Scottish Water when they do have an issue with the quality of their water supply has improved in recent years.

“This year I have been struck by the many excellent initiatives within the company to apply science to gain a better understanding of water quality and treatment processes. This work will deliver benefits in ensuring processes are more resilient and improve the service received by consumers. I am especially keen to see a reduction in the number of water quality incidents reported to us by Scottish Water.”