Is the tap water safe to drink in China?
Is tap water safe to drink in China?
Before I came to China, my grandma kept reminding be to never drink the tap water. But why isn’t the water safe? What in the water makes it unsafe to drink?
When I called the Beijing Water Authority this is what they said: All tap water in Beijing is drinkable according to standards set by the World Health Organization. You can definitely drink the water. If you are afraid of germs, just boil it. There is no reason to worry.
However, after doing a bit of research on my own I found that
Even though Beijing has regulations which includs the regulation of pesticides, heavy metals and organic compounds. Tests were conducted at water treatment plants, and not at the tap. When the water moves through the city, old rusting pipes cause a metallic taste and unpleasant smell to come from the tap. According to Ma Jun, director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, Drinking water is recontaminated in the old distribution network.
Most people in Beijing do not drink the water straight from the tap for fear of contamination. They often boil or filter water before drinking it. However, boiling water does not do anything to remove pesticides or heavy metals if there are any in the water.
The water is clean before it reaches our sinks, it’s the pipes that are the problem. Tap water in one apartment may differ from the tap water in another. So If you worry for your health, don’t drink the tap.
This is Jessica for Foreign Accent SYA Beijing.
Sources:
Beijing Water Authority
https://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/4962-What-s-coming-out-of-China-s-taps-
http://www.purelivingchina.com/residential/learning-center/water-quality/
