Most of the tap water in Australia meets the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines set by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), which ensure that tap water is safe and free from harmful contaminants, such as bacteria, viruses, chemicals, and heavy metals.
The ten states with the cleanest tap water in the US are Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Nebraska, Delaware, Kentucky, South Carolina, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Nevada. Hawaii has the best tap water in the US, reporting only 2 water violations.
Melbourne Water is proud to have taken out top honours at the Ixom Best Tasting Tap Water in Australia competition.
1. Puerto Williams in Santiago Chile: Extensive research carried out by University of North Texas, University of Magallanes and University of Chile concluded that Puerto Williams has “the purest water on the planet.” There is absolutely no trace of pollution in the water which is remarkable in this day and age.
"If you wonder what really pure water tastes like, open a bottle of Fiji water and you know it "*. Fiji water is considered one of the purest spring waters in the world and is probably the most famous gourmet water in the world.
In fact, by weight, in Australia, tapwater is at least 99.94% water. That number isn't an homage to Don Bradman – it's got more to do with human health and taste. The Australian Drinking Water Guidelines, which were created in 2011, sets maximum limits for all the things that are commonly seen in tapwater.
For example, Australia has only a small portion of the world's water resources but also has a small population, so it has more water available per person than Asia, which has far more water but a much bigger population.
The quality of drinking water in Australia is generally high, with 93% of households having access to clean, safe drinking water. Yet, while this is true for urban households, almost 200,000 people living in remote parts of the country do not have the same luxury.
After putting their tastebuds to the test a group of thirsty judges has decided the best drinking water in the country is from the Richmond Valley Council in the New South Wales Northern Rivers region.
Scandinavia and Finland
If you put them all together, it's clear that this region of the world is where one can find perhaps the cleanest and safest water flowing from taps. Just for good measure, Finland further filters its naturally clean water multiple times before it reaches the tap.
If the kitchen sink tends to be your regular watering hole, you're in safe hands. British tap water is said to be one of the best water supplies in the world, with a quality rating of 99.96% according to Discover Water.
Discover Australia's purest water with Pureau. The only water guaranteed to be 100% free from chlorine, salt, bacteria, fluoride and other impurities found in tap and other bottled waters. Pureau's unique chemical-free three step purification process makes Pureau the healthy choice for everyday drinking and cooking.
The answer given by most professionals is that the public tap water in Australia is “perfectly safe to drink”.
In terms of rainfall, Australia is the driest inhabited continent, and the amount of rainwater that enters rivers is also very low. On average, only 12% of rainfall flows into rivers in Australia, compared to 39% for Europe and 52% for North America.
The top four owners of water entitlements by country are Canada with 2.0 percent of the total Australian water entitlement on issue, the US with 1.6 percent, China with 1.5 percent, and the UK with 1.0 percent.
When measured by average wealth, Australia is fourth behind Switzerland, the United States and Hong Kong, reflecting that wealth is more evenly distributed in Australia than in those countries. Australia had about 2.2 million millionaires (calculated in US dollars) in 2021, up from 1.8 million millionaires in 2020.
Clean Up Australia chair Pip Kiernan says Australians must remember 90 per cent of the cost of a bottle of water can be traced back to the vessel, the lid and the label. "You can save all that money by remembering your reusable bottle and drinking tap water or filling up at public drinking water fountains."
For many people filtering tap water makes substantial improvements to the taste – particularly the chlorine taste that is a by-product of our mains water disinfection processes. Plus, there are other benefits to installing a filtration system – such as instant boiling, chilled and sparkling water options.
In Sydney, water is considered 'soft' with a hardness level of about 50mg/L. If you look at the water hardness map of Australia, Victoria and Tasmania have the softest water, while Western Australia and South Australia have some of the hardest. Between capital cities in Australia, water hardness varies dramatically.
Australia has some of the highest-quality drinking water in the world. Most of it comes from regulated, reliable sources and is tested for safety before entering our homes. This means tap water is a perfectly safe and healthy choice for hydration.
While there are a few places that boast extremely clean water, such as Canada, Iceland, Antarctica, or even Upstate New York, the team of scientists determined that the cleanest water in the world was in the Patagonia region of Chile, Puerto Williams.
According to the water usage statistics by Our World in Data, China is the biggest consumer of water for domestic purposes like cleaning, cooking, drinking, and washing and uses over 70 billion m3 annually.