What's in Your Tap Water?

Common Problems with Drinking Water in Almeria

Are you heavy lifting an endless supply of bottled water from the supermarket because your tap water tastes metallic, salty, or just a bit 'ick' and you don't quite trust it?

You are not alone.

Although Spain's drinking water is regulated, and largely safe to drink, rural areas like Almeria have a few water quality challenges that range from contaminants to unpleasant taste and occasional cloudiness.

So, Is Tap Water Safe to Drink in Almeria?

The picture nationwide, according to government reports, is that 99% of samples from public water supplies are within legal safety thresholds for human consumption.

Sounds good right? Well, not entirely, because in rural regions like Almeria there's often older infrastructure and gaps in testing water quality.

The Fundación Botín study highlighted that almost 47% of Spain's population is drinking water from sources that don't meet the EU's 'good ecological status' and requires more intensive treatment.

Nasty Tap Water Taste and Smell?

If you ever experience slightly metallic or salty tasting tap water in your Almeria home it's because the water often comes from desalination plants or highly mineralised groundwater. This can produce a bad taste when desalination output is low, or when wells are used instead.

In 2024 there was a water alert in Vícar after excess bromates were found in the supply, prompting the authorities to declare the tap water unfit for drinking.

Common Contaminants in Spanish Water

Your water may be clear, and it may even smell fine, but that doesn't mean it doesn't harbour hidden contaminants. Some of the most common in Spain, and in Almeria are:

Nitrates

Almeria is a rural zone with a lot of intensive agricultural activity, as the 'plastic sea' demonstrates. Shockingly, according to the Ecologistas en Acción '2023 Nitrate Study', over 220,000 people in 257 municipalities drank water with nitrate levels above the legal limit of 50 mg/L.

In early 2024, the Pozo Simón in Lubrín was declared unfit for human consumption due to high nitrate levels, and could only be used for bathing, washing etc.

The bottom line is that nitrates from agriculture, seep down into the ground and end up in rural water supplies.

Radioactivity

Now I know that you've raised an eyebrow here but, trust me, radioactivity doesn't just happen because of random accidents with power plants or bombs, it occurs naturally in some Andalucian aquifers.

In 2023 the use of the Bernal well system in Almeria city was halted after elevated levels of natural radioactivity were detected - a situation that got a lot of media attention across Spain at the time.

Microbes

We all know it doesn't rain much in Almeria, but when it does it rains BIG and the run-off can introduce bacteria such as E.Coli into springs or badly sealed wells. The SINAC 2022 report noted that over 1% of rural water supply samples failed bacterial safety standards - which makes drinking water a bit of a 'crap shoot' - sometimes literally.

This less than comforting picture is not just a problem in Almeria. The EEA Indicator Dashboard reports that, across the EU, 24% of groundwater bodies have poor chemical quality, and 29% fail chemical or quantitative standards.

Spain has 69 groundwater bodies that fail, many of them in Andalucía where ground is being increasingly contaminated by agricultural nitrates, coastal salinisation and pure overuse.

Given all of this, it's no wonder that in Almeria many residents opt for bottled water, and see it as a safer alternative to tap water.

The Campo Conundrum: Private Wells and Springs

If you have a rural home in Almeria then you may well be depending private wells or public springs, whether individually owned or communal.

What you may not realise is that current water testing regulations in Spain state that private water supplies serving fewer then 50 people, or supplies of under 10m³/day, can be exempted from regular testing.

In fact, in 2020, only 53% of Spanish municipalities submitted water quality data, and most of the non-reporting ones were small, rural towns. This raises serious question marks over the safety of rural water.

What Can You Do?

There are steps you can take to ensure your tap water is safe to drink:

1. If you have a mains supply, check the water quality for your area via the SINAC Citizen Portal.

2. Arrange annual testing for nitrates, bacteria, and metals if your water is from a private source.

3. Report any concerns with your water's colour, taste or safety to the local health authorities.

4. Consider a home filtration system, such as a Reverse Osmosis water filter to remove 99.9% of contaminants.

And Finally

The main's tap water in your Almeria home may meet legal standards the vast majority of the time, but simply suffer from bad taste or smell. You may simply not trust it or be completely confident that it's safe for you and your family.

Knowing what's in your water, how it's tested (and for what!), and what action you can take empowers you to make wise choices and protect your health.