Environment
Why Copenhagen Has Almost Perfect Water
Residents of the Danish capital swim in its harbor and drink some of the world’s purest tap water—taking care not to waste it—thanks to decades of government efforts.
If you lived in a metropolis roughly the population of Baltimore, would you consider swimming in its waterways?* In the United States, the response is likely “not a chance.”
But in Copenhagen—Denmark’s capital of 1.2 million people, crisscrossed by canals and practically surrounded by water—jumping into the harbor that splits the city in half isn’t reserved for the brave few who can stomach sludge. It’s a government-sanctioned, and completely safe, part of everyday life. In 2002 the city opened Islands Brygge, the first of its four “harbor baths,” right in a bustling downtown neighborhood. Now a dip in the harbor (even if it’s an impromptu after-dinner swim in your underwear) is a regular occurrence for many Copenhageners.