From sewage and scum to swimming in ‘blue gold’: how Switzerland transformed its rivers | Environment

IIn the early days of spring, people flow into the dispute of the wide Geneva Lake who line up on the ground, their faces tilted towards the sun. Dior, Cartier and Rocks are among the duties of high -end stores that overlook water. René Rottenberg, 75, has just ended the swimming of 400 meters through this high -end urban forest – a ritual that he repeats up to five times a week, even in the middle of winter.

For a retired gynecologist, the ability to swim in crystal water is the largest luxury. “It is very fun,” he says. “The place is beautiful.”

Rottenberg is a member of Les Givrés Swimming Club, which starts from the area of ​​the berth, beach and a swimming area in the city center. A young child who plays on the artificial beach is fulfilled by his mother, who you do not see before hitting the pebble on the swan.

Dentists, trustees, judges, teachers and retirees are all courage of water 8c (46.4f) during lunch break, emerging red and cold. “You find everyone here,” says Rottenberg. They have lunch together after that, before they swallowed the city.

The scene of people who call themselves in an internal waterway in the city will not be unimaginable in most cities in Europe and the United States and many other parts of the world. Three quarters of Britain’s rivers are in bad environmental health condition, According to the data Thousands of citizens gathered it in 2024, with experts describing the results as “truly disturbing”.

Pollution from water and agricultural surface flow companies leads pollution, which affects all parts of the country, which causes toxic algae flowers, collective death of fish, and risks to human health.

However, via Switzerland, these swimming scenes are natural. This was not always the case. In the sixties of the last century, Switzerland had among the most dirt waters in Europe, and its flow of algae, foaming mountains, conflict, and Floating dead fish on the surface. For decades, swimming has been banned in some rivers such as Aare and Limmat on the basis of health, and people can Get If they swallow water.

Raw sewage and industrial wastewater flowed directly to water bodies – In 1965 only 14 % From the population was connected to the wastewater treatment plant. Today, it is also 98 %And the country has a good reputation in the virgin swimming water, and it is sometimes referred to as its name “Blue Gold” – All thanks to a complex network of sewage plants.

The main driver of this shift was a tragedy in the mountain resort in Zermat in 1963, when the typhoid erupted Three people And made 437 others sick. The soldiers were deployed and schools were transferred to emergency hospitals with the spread of panic. The pressure on the government to clean the waterways, which found it was a source of outbreak. In 1971, sewage treatment was written in Swiss law.

Now Switzerland has some of the most rivers in Europe. according to 2023 data From the European Environment Agency, only five shower areas in the country were classified as poor. Through the spectrum politicians agree to give priority to clean water.

“The quality of the water is very high is important for the population,” says Michael Matti, head of the Holieger Handering Technology. “We are looking for a lot of attention to the lack of pollution of water on its way Switzerland“

They pay for it: the government spent a rate of 174 pounds for a person in the treatment of wastewater in 2022, compared to about 90 pounds for the person in England and Wales in the fiscal year 2022-23, according to the analysis before A report ends.

Now, Switzerland leads the world to purify its water from microbial materials: a group of chemicals that are often present in water bodies that appear clear. It includes antidepressants, antibiotics, diabetes treatments and anti -inflammatory, which they have Unknown and perhaps harmful consequences For human health and ecological order.

In 2016, Switzerland became the first country to implement legislation to clean medicines and chemicals that combine waterways. This work depends on a precautionary principle – if something is unknown, it makes mistakes on the side of caution. “It is just a matter of time before it causes problems,” says Matte.

Traditional wastewater treatment is designed to deal with organic waste but less effective with chemicals, and thus plants throughout Switzerland get a upgrade.

It is a 20 -minute bus station from the lake, which is the sewage treatment plant fillet, and it is the first to treat Geneva.

The facility filters 250 liters of water every second. First, it filters garbage, food, and money – anything that might go down to their toilets (I found a study $ 1.8 million (1.4 million pounds) Gold flow through the Swiss sewers every year). Then the fat and sand are removed before treating water in huge ponds of bacteria that remove the organic matter.

“It works like your stomach,” says Friederic Galli, an operating engineer at Industriels de Genève (Sig), who runs the factory.

Then the water is passed through activated charcoal, which works like a sponge, and absorbs micro chemicals.

Every year, the Swiss adds Micropolutant processing facilities to seven wastewater factories, and now a total of 37 years by 2040, there will be about 140 Swiss Water Association (VSA). “Many people do not know many of the operations we have here, and how we do it,” says Gali. “All our actions that we implement, we do for society.”

Before 2016, a series of pilots found that removing 80 % of pollutants is the maximum amount that can be achieved at a reasonable cost. Among 20 % of the unanimous chemicals are PFAs, known as chemicals forever. “The end of the game is to ban these materials.” The end of the game is to block these materials. “The pollutants should not be used very resistant anymore,” says Matte.

Harrow water experts from France, Italy and Belgium, among other countries, visited the factory to find out lessons in the careful treatment they could return to the home. “On Micropolutants, we are 10 to 15 years ago on our neighbors,” says Matte.

In response to the work of Switzerland, the European Union requires wastewater treatment factories that serve more than 10,000 people to be able to remove the microbut By 2045. “They want to go very quickly,” says Matte.

There are no plans in the UK to do the same, despite the high levels of antibiotics and other drugs It is found In water on some of the most protected national landscapes.

Matley says people are not aware of the amount of work that was necessary to purify Switzerland, but they consider it important. “I think the Swiss people are proud of their water,” he says, adding that it helps citizens enjoy “a healthy and happy life.”

On the Geneva Lake, not only swimmers who benefit from attractive water: people read, share beer with friends, and children jump between rocks.

“We are united with water,” says Pascal Boden, a member of the Le Givrés club for swimming. Baudin comes, retired, here every day, and says that since he stopped working, the swimming group has become a more important social relationship.

“If you do not have friends, if you don’t have a social life, then you close yourself in your home and be exposed to depression. Here is the perfect medicine – cold water and friends.”

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