International World Water Day 2022 Will Focus on Groundwater

FRANKFURT, GERMANY — The motto of this year's International World Water Day is "Groundwater: Making the invisible visible". With this theme, the United Nations wants to draw attention to the importance of groundwater worldwide.

Many people are unaware of the fundamental importance of groundwater as an indispensable resource and part of the water cycle, and of the pressures to which it is exposed through human activity and increasingly through climate change. This is also true for Germany. Groundwater accounts for 70 per cent of the public water supply in Germany, making it the most important resource for drinking water production. Despite this, groundwater is exposed to increasing dangers in terms of quality and quantity. Its quality is affected by pollutant inputs such as nitrates, pesticide residues or pharmaceuticals.

The measures to filter out these undesirable inputs are costly. The costs are ultimately borne by consumers. Nevertheless, the call for a more responsible use of the valuable resource water is still not being heard enough.

"The German manufacturers of water technology are aware of the challenges this poses for water supply. They are meeting them with needs-oriented offers from water extraction to water treatment that consistently pursue this goal of responsible use of water as a resource," says Wolfgang Burchard, Managing Director of the VDMA Valves Association.

This also includes intelligent drinking water management systems, automatic leakage protection devices and outlet fittings that are geared towards consumption-saving, safe and health-promoting water use. The advancing digitalization of the installation ensures a necessary water change and creates transparency about consumption figures.

"The range of products offered by our member companies is wide, and digitalization is creating new opportunities. However, our manufacturers are also thinking about countries and regions where basic products and services are primarily in demand. Here, for example, water supply systems score with intuitive, error-avoiding connection technologies, explains Burchard. "The next showcase of our industry's comprehensive product portfolio will take place this year from 30 May to 3 June at IFAT Munich, the world's leading trade fair for water and wastewater management."