While Luxembourg's rivers may seem picturesque, the hidden dangers of industrial runoff and untested pollutants threaten both water quality and public trust.

The stream runs down the little hill, through a cow meadow, and into a river. The view is quaint, serene, and endearing. But I would not let my kids play in the water. Instead, we hopped on a bus and traveled to another location. A new location with another stream. I hoped this stream was cleaner than the first location.

At the new location, the kids played, walked on rocks, made rock bridges, and got wet and a little muddy. My kids know my rule: children must spend at least three hours a day playing, laughing, and having fun. Being active builds strong bones, laughing relieves stress, and having fun… well, there is nothing wrong with having fun.

As parents, we are morally obligated to keep that child safe and healthy. At the first stream, I saw drain pipes pouring water into the stream. I did not know where these pipes came from, but the water was whitish and I did not trust it. Was it paint? Was it paint thinner? Was it plaster caulk? Was a building being renovated upstream?

We have an unfortunate truth that is not talked about. One that most new parents might feel shocked, and maybe betrayed when they find out. It is the kind of issue where we expect that when we are told something is 'safe' it ought to meet modern safety standards. But what happens when those standards fall short?

Recently, Luxembourg's director of the Water Management Authority, Marc Hans, provided insights into the challenges facing the Grand Duchy's water resources, concluding that while Luxembourg benefits from a steady water supply, the country faces significant challenges in maintaining water quality, particularly in its rivers, streams, and groundwater reserves.

In 1883, the famous author Mark Twain wrote about what a wave means in a river. The below passage is from his book, Life on the Mississippi. Twain once had a job as a riverboat pilot. He steered the boat up and down the large Mississippi River. While learning to steer the riverboat, he realized that the beauty of the river was deceptive.

"Now when I had mastered the language of this water and had come to know
every trifling feature that bordered the great river as familiarly as I knew the letters
of the alphabet, I had made a valuable acquisition. But I had lost something,
too. I had lost something which could never be restored to me while I lived. All
the grace, the beauty, the poetry, had gone out of the majestic river!"

The reason the beauty of the river disappeared was because Twain realised why it was beautiful. For example, waves of water splashed up and formed white foam. Twain thought these waves and foam were beautiful. Twain also learned that he must steer the riverboat away from these waves and foam. He had to steer away from these waves because there was a rock causing the splashing. If the boat hit the rock, it would sink the boat. The waves and foam on the river were no longer beautiful. It was a deception.

When I look at the lovely river in the Pétrusse Valley, the view is pretty. However, I also noticed there are pipes next to the river. These pipes have water flowing out of them into the river. Sometimes the pipe water is clean, sometimes the water is grey, sometimes the water looks like white paint!

Each town in Luxembourg is different. When rainwater falls on the streets, the water flows down the street into a 'storm drain'. The storm drain leads the water to either 1) the wastewater treatment plant or 2) to an 'outflow' (a pipe) and into a river. If storm water flows into rivers, this impacts the quality of life.

You may have noticed a lot of vehicle traffic on the street. You also may have seen the construction trucks, demolished buildings, and construction. Cars and trucks leave car and truck exhaust particles on the street. Construction leaves dust, grit, and paint on the street. You may have seen construction workers cleaning out paint buckets and dumping the water down the storm drain. When it rains, the water washes all the pollution down the storm drain. These storm drains lead the 'outflow' (pipe) and into rivers… near where children play.

Let's take this a step further. When a nation tests groundwater (e.g. lakes, rivers, streams), and tells the people that it is safe, we have to ask… "What type of pollutants were tested?" If a type of pollution was not tested, then how do we know it was safe? What types of pollution are not being tested?

Luxembourg follows the regulations from the EU when it comes to which chemicals to monitor for industry. They are part of the umbrella title of the Urban Wastewater Act of Luxembourg and include the Commodore Law and Industrial Emission Laws. This means that if the pollution is not on the list, it is not tested.

Let's look at another issue: how often is the water tested? At the beginning of this article, I mentioned modern testing procedures. One of my favourite classes at university was Water and Wastewater Management. One of my first jobs was as a laboratory technician at an environmental testing laboratory. This laboratory tested water, wastewater, soil, solids, and air samples for pollution. We tested samples from around the world, it is a top-notch company.

In Luxembourg, government inspections are not done weekly, monthly, or yearly. Government inspections happen a minimum of every five years, and the soil is only inspected every 10 years.

Below is the current standard in Luxembourg for Article 17: Exigences de surveillance of the Commodore Law. For your convenience, a translation from French to English is provided.

How does this compare to other places? For example: the State of New York (including the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, and NYC) tests groundwater a minimum of 5 times per month. Tests include microbial contaminations and chemicals.

The results are available to the public and can be translated for those who do not speak English. The State of New York has one official language, English, and 12 administrative languages. The chosen languages are the 12 most common languages based on census records. The census is taken every 10 years with the current 12 languages including Spanish, Mandarin, Korean, Yiddish, Italian, etc.. This way, residents can stay informed.

A pollution testing computer can test 50 or more wastewater samples within 4–5 hours, with most laboratories providing a report within 24–48 hours. If there is pollution, new samples are taken regularly until the pollution meets requirements.
Luxembourg is a small country with many streams and rivers. It is true, that testing all these streams and rivers would cost a lot of money.

The State of New York is roughly 1/3rd the size of France and has two Great Lakes to monitor along with all the streams and rivers. The State of New York and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg are not an apples-to-apples comparison.

However, a river is a river and a stream is a stream, and the cost per water sample should be roughly the same. Maybe a collaboration is possible.