About-Ozone.Com

What are the current standards for drinking water disinfection in the EU ozone? In this blog post, we take a closer look at the drinking water disinfection standards in the EU countries and explore how ozone is used to meet these requirements.

Chlorine is the most frequently used disinfectant and it has been a key component of water treatment for decades. Chlorine’s advantage is that it can be manufactured easily and cheaply, making it an attractive choice. It contributes to the water’s dependability. Chlorine tablets are used to disinfect water when no public drinking water treatment is available. Alternative disinfectants have been used since the discovery of chlorinated by-products.

Standards for Drinking Water Disinfection in the EU

Most European countries applied drinking water disinfection at the end of the nineteenth century or the beginning of the twentieth century. Ozone, chlorine and other chemicals have also been used to treat drinking water. In Middelkerke (Belgium), the oldest known application of drinking water disinfection in Europe, chlorinated bleach was added. In 1905, the London Metropolitan Water Board began using water purification disinfection after studying the chlorine disinfection mechanism in water treatment.

Chlorine disinfection was considered an excellent alternative for long-term raw water storage by this organization. Pathogenic bacteria naturally died out during storage.

In any case, the majority of European countries utilize alternative disinfectants for drinking water disinfection such as ozone. Such as, ozone is used commonly used in France. In 1906, ozone was first used to purify drinking water. Italy and Germany employ ozone or chlorine dioxide as their main oxidant and sanitizer.

European Drinking Water Guideline 98/83/EC

The Drinking Water Directive 98/83/EC was accepted by the European Union in 1998. This quality standard for drinking water is a set of standards for water purity. The appendices list specific requirements that must be met to assess drinking water quality. This guideline may be expanded upon by each member state of the EU.

Biocidal Products Guideline

In 1998, the Biocidal Products Guideline was established. A biocidal product is an active substance or device intended to kill or repel harmful or undesirable organisms via biological or chemical means. Chemical disinfectants for water purification are classified as biocides as well. When a biocidal substance is misused, it may harm human, animal, or plant health or the environment.