Switzerland’s rivers and lakes once suffered from severe pollution, but today they are among the cleanest in Europe—thanks to decades of investment and bold environmental reform. In the 1960s, many Swiss waterways were choked with waste, prompting nationwide concern after a typhoid outbreak traced to contaminated water. That crisis sparked a transformative journey that has made swimming in city rivers not only possible but popular.
By connecting nearly the entire population to advanced wastewater treatment systems and filtering out emerging pollutants like pharmaceuticals, Switzerland has turned its water infrastructure into a global model. The country now spends twice as much per citizen on water purification as its neighbors, proving that clean water is a public priority. Cities like Zurich and Bern now boast safe, swimmable rivers—once unthinkable just a few decades ago. As other nations look to tackle pollution, Switzerland shows that recovery is possible when clean water is treated like the treasure it truly is.