Building public drinking water taps in Tallinn

Projekti kirjeldus eesti keeles

At the moment, there are about 30 public drinking water taps in Tallinn, which clearly does not cover the needs of urban residents and tourists. Drinking water points have been created along health trails (Järvevana Road), in the Old Town (Niguliste Street, Viru Gates), between the monument of Russalka and the seashore, near the Maarjamäe Memorial on Pirita Road, in freshly renovated or established parks (Männi Park, Tondiraba Park), but there is no network covering the needs of the entire city.

The need for public water taps has been made particularly relevant considering hot summers of recent years. Water taps help to reduce the health risks caused by heat and the use of reusable water bottles alongside with the tap water reducing the emergence of plastic waste. With one cubic meter of tap water, it is possible to prevent the production, transportation and handling of 2,000 plastic or glass bottles, because packaging a cubic meter of water takes just as many bottles. 

The awareness of Tallinn residents about free drinking water taps is high - they are aware that free public water taps are open in the city during the summer season and because of that they are very popular. Taps are temporarily closed when cold temperatures arrive to prevent ice damage.

As a result of the project, 15 new drinking water taps will be installed in the city space based on the needs of the citizens of the city.

The location of drinking water taps will be selected taking into account both the need of people and the distance from the other public water points. Water taps are built in places where people move more and need them most, and where pipelines already exist.

The availability of high-quality drinking water shall be ensured from all drinking water taps. Water complies with the requirements of Regulation No 61 of the Minister of Social Affairs of 24.06.2019 "Quality and control requirements and methods of analysis of drinking water."

Project timeline: 23.09.2022 - 30.04.2024
Project number: 2014-2021.1.06.22-0112
Project is finansed through The environmental Investment Centre (EIC) from the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism 2014–2021 “Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation”
Project budget is 352 311,25 euros, from which the grant size is 85% (299 464,56 euros).