Water analysis

Drinking water:

Drinking water is the most strictly regulated and controlled foodstuff in the European Union. It is subject to ongoing sanitary monitoring, designed to guarantee its safety, and must meet the very strict standards set by the Grand-Ducal regulation of October 7, 2002 on the quality of water intended for human consumption, based on a European directive.

Drinking water quality controls:

The municipal administration regularly carries out in-depth analyses of the drinking water in the commune of Mamer’s network. The water supplied is regularly checked for chemical and bacteriological contamination at source and in the network, and its quality meets the standards laid down by law.

These include :

• routine checks, which are carried out regularly
• comprehensive controls, which are carried out 2 or 3 times a year and during which a total of 106 parameters, including various pesticides, are analysed;
• self-monitoring of springs and reservoirs, which is carried out regularly; chemical analyses of springs and weekly checks are carried out by the Syndicat des Eaux du Sud (SES).

Glossary of terms:

Bacteriological quality
The bacteriological quality of water is assessed by regularly testing for bacteria whose presence in drinking water indicates contamination.

Hardness
Water hardness corresponds to the calcium and magnesium salts naturally present in water. It is expressed in degrees and varies between 0° and 50°.

Nitrates
Nitrates occur naturally in soil and water. Excessive or poorly controlled fertilization can increase nitrate levels in water resources. To be suitable for consumption by pregnant women and infants, water must not contain more than 50 mg of nitrates per liter.

Pesticides
The presence of pesticides in water resources is due to poor control of the products used to protect crops or to weed. The regulatory value of 0.1 mg/liter is below known toxicity thresholds.