Swiss Review 2/2021

Swiss Review / April 2021 / No.2 THEODORA PETER Water fl ows in abundance in Switzer- land – a placewhere natural resources are otherwise scarce. There is a reason why our country is known as the res- ervoir of Europe. Not only do the Rhine and Rhône begin their journey here to the Atlantic and Mediterra- nean respectively, but Swiss streams and rivers also feed the major Euro- pean rivers Po, Danube and Adige. Switzerland’s enormous reserves of “the blue gold” extend to lakes and groundwater too. Climate change has brought drier summers, causing gla- ciers to melt and reducing local springs to a mere trickle. Yet rain will continue to be Switzerland’s most im- portant water resource, feeding the country’s groundwater particularly during thewintermonths. On average, 60 billion cubicmetres of preciouswa- ter falls fromthe sky each year in Swit- zerland – equal to the volume of Lake Constance and Lake Lucerne put to- gether. Switzerland looks unlikely to run dry any time soon. However, the quality of Swiss water is another issue altogether. Pesticide by-products in drinking water Some 80 per cent of Swiss drinking water comes from springs and groundwater, 20 per cent from lakes. Tainted waters Switzerland has huge water reserves. Every household in the country can access clean drinking water at all times. Or can they? Not all is as it seems. 6 Focus