ERSAR presented the 2025 Annual Water and Waste Services Report (RASARP), which shows that the “Safe Water” indicator in 2024 reached 98.86%.
“This is the 10th consecutive year that the country has achieved a 99% rating for this indicator, which measures the quality of water at consumers’ taps,” said a statement about the report.
Last year, more than 600,000 analyses were performed in accredited laboratories, confirming the trend for the tenth consecutive year of “excellence in the quality of water for human consumption.”
“The value of this indicator reflects water quality control, both by performing the minimum number of regulatory analyses required by the Water Quality Control Programs (PCQA) approved by ERSAR, and by complying with water quality standards (parametric values) in the analyses performed,” the statement states.
According to data, last year, 225 municipalities (81%) had exceptional drinking water quality (safe water ≥ 99%), four more municipalities than in 2023.Fifty-one municipalities recorded water safety above 95% but below the 99% target, and two municipalities did not reach the 95% safe water level (Tondela, with 93.29%, and Marco de Canavezes, with 94.77%).
Quoted in the statement, Vera Eiró, Chairwoman of the ERSAR Board of Directors, considered it essential to promote uptake of the water service, because safe water for all users “is only guaranteed by connection to the public supply system.”