100 cast iron drinking fountains combat the plastic bottles
In Berlin there are currently 48 drinking fountains from which, between May and October in each case an average of 350,000 litres of nicely cooled water bubbles up from the city’s drinking water system. In addition there are 62 drinking water dispensers available in public administrative buildings. Berlin wants to instil the drinking of healthy, mineral-rich mains water even more strongly in public spaces and offer everyone in the city refreshment with drinking water as they pass by – quickly, free of charge and in an uncomplicated and environmentally friendly way. And, not least, to declare war on the waste mountains of plastic bottles!
With the presentation of the “Blue Community” certificate on 23 October 2018 Berlin has officially received the “Blue Community” designation. With this certificate, presented to the Berlin Senate, the City subscribes to the principles of a “Blue Community”, thereby committing itself to the following four principles:
- Recognition that water is a human right
- Water services remain under the control of the public authorities
- Drinking mains water instead of bottled water
- Promoting partnerships with international partners
Blue Community Berlin – an exemplary initiative
Blue Communities, Berlin is the third “blue” capital of Europe, encourage the people within them to go back to drinking mains water. Within their own structures and operational processes are striving towards responsible handling of water and – as far as possible – use drinking water from the public water supply. Because: locally sourced mains water provided via the municipal drinking water network protects the environment. Mineral and table water, on the other hand, is filled into bottles and transported onto the street, requiring a thousand times more energy than is used for the supply of mains water from the drinking water network.
With the resolution of the House of Representatives for the “Blue Community” for the first time the State of Berlin is making one million euros available for a drinking water fountain construction programme over the coming two years. Distributed over the whole of the city, Berliner Wasserbetriebe, the water supply company for the city, will now be setting up a further 100 drinking fountains and water dispensers in addition to those already in existence.
Manufacture of the drinking fountains are in good hands
The contract for the construction of these lavishly designed Kaiser drinking fountains and their delivery went to Ludwig Frischhut GmbH & Co. KG from Pfarrkirchen in Bavaria, a subsidiary of the Talis Group.
After taking over, adapting and preparing the existing model for the Kaiser drinking fountain, which has been produced since 1985, the company, working together with Berliner Wasserbetrieben and the enamellers commissioned for the work, succeeded in producing the initial sample and receiving the go-ahead for this. After the challenging production of the individual cast iron components and their enamelling, finishing, preliminary assembly and final checking were carried out at the Ludwig Frischhut premises. This collaboration between workshops enabled the quality demanded by Berliner Wasserbetriebe to be guaranteed under one roof. Therefore the company is the main supplier for the “100 drinking water fountains for Berlin” project being promoted by the Berlin Senate.
Author: Jörg Meier, Ludwig Frischhut GmbH & Co. KG
The article was slightly shortened by the editors. You can find the complete article with various illustrations as a PDF in the download area under Downloads Annual Issues EADIPS FGR.