Rural Community Gateway

Around 150,000 people who rely on private water supplies in Scotland will benefit from cleaner and healthier drinking water, according to the Scottish Executive.

Strengthened regulations came into force this month that will better protect the health of people who are not connected to the main public supply by helping to reduce the risk of drinking contaminated water.

The Private Water Supplies Regulations incorporate the latest safety advances to improve water quality for communities which depend on private supplies.

Deputy Minister for Environment Rhona Brankin said:

"Hundreds of thousands of people living, working or visiting remote parts of Scotland rely on private water sources every day. We must ensure that they are doing so safely.

"It is also essential that rural businesses meet modern quality standards to ensure that the water they are offering the public is safe to drink.

"These regulations will help achieve that and I would encourage everyone who is dependent on private supplies to make use of the grant scheme available to help people invest in new equipment to improve their water quality."

The grant scheme will offer users of private water supplies up to eight hundred pounds to help meet some of the costs of bringing their water supply up to modern standards.

The Executive is developing education and awareness material for owners and users of private supplies to support the strengthened regulatory framework.

This material will be distributed by local authorities and will include simple measures which all consumers can take to reduce risks from their supply.

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