River Rhine: from sewer to the spring of life

Water is the key issue in a number of declarations made by several eminent international commissions in recent years. The availability of clean and unpolluted water is crucial to sustainable development. The River Rhine was turned by pollution into the sewer of Western Europe; environmental protection measures, changes in industrial production and consumers' behaviour and remedial measures have drastically improved the quality of Rhine water, which, besides being the main water-way in Europe, also serves as a source of drinking water for a large population and is used for recreational purposes. Small occasional accidents, major spills, very remote accidents, war activities, etc. threaten the full recovery of what is the socially and economically most important watercourse in Europe. The organizational and technological measures taken to protect the Rhine from pollution can serve as an example of how other major freshwater sources could be protected from contamination or how existing pollution could be remedied.