Watch: Tap water? No thanks, many people told us

A new government grant to subsidise carbon filters for home taps may improve water taste – but many people still aren’t convinced.

Times of Malta asked the public where they get their drinking water, and whether a new grant might tempt them to reconsider tap water. 

Water Services Corporation has invested significantly in infrastructure in recent years and says those investments are leading to better-tasting tap water.

Chloride and chlorine levels have been reduced by 30%, WSC chairman Karl Cilia said last week, and reverse osmosis-sourced water now makes up 70% of tap water, up from the previous 60%. 

But many people we spoke to remained unconvinced. 

At the Quad in Mrieħel, workers and shoppers on their lunch breaks were candid: all said they do not drink water from the tap because of the taste.

“I wouldn’t even use tap water to make a soup,” said Carmen Mizzi, a local in her 60s.

Her husband, Manuel, was just as blunt: “I wouldn’t even make a cup of tea with it.”

Carmen said she only uses tap water when boiling pasta ‒ because, as she explained, “it doesn’t affect the taste of my food, and at the end of cooking, I’ll discard it anyway.”

The couple agreed that tap water “tasted better” when they were younger.

“It had a sweetish taste, not like it is today at all,” Manuel added.

Neither could pinpoint when the change in taste occurred.

They said they wouldn’t be applying for the grant, having already tried a reverse osmosis system and being unhappy with the results.

Robin Vermuellen, a 29-year-old Belgian who works in the igaming industry, echoed their concerns.

“Maybe I feel safer drinking the water at home because I grew up with it,” he said.

He rated Maltese tap water 5.5 out of 10, compared to a 9 for Belgian water.

He said he would give the new scheme a try but remained hesitant about it, saying that he saw people on social media with a water filter commenting, “they still think the taste is not the best”.

He was also surprised to learn that Malta ranks among the top 20 countries in the world for water quality, according to Yale University ‒ a fact that surprised most of the people Times of Malta spoke to.

“I know that the water is safe, but it tastes horrible,” said Tom Erik Skjønsberg, 48.

Originally from Norway, Skjønsberg said he grew up drinking tap water and would like to do so in Malta, too. He was the only person interviewed who had heard about the new scheme and said he was considering applying for it.

The new grant, administered by the Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS), will come into effect on March 26. It will cover 60% of the cost of carbon filtration systems, capped at €100.

The scheme replaces the previous Water Guard programme, which offered a 40% grant on filtration systems, also capped at €100.

A separate 40% grant for reverse osmosis systems remains in place, with a higher cap of €300.

While safety is no longer in question, taste remains a barrier for many people.