A programme to improve drinking water quality in line with the EU directive has been underway since 2001, targeting around 900 settlements and more than 2.5 million residents of the country (SUMANAS, 2005). By 2010, only three settlements, with a total of 1 300 residents, are exposed to drinking water with arsenic levels highly exceeding the EU limit value. The affected population is supplied with healthy drinking water from alternative sources. The red sludge disaster in 2010, caused by a collapsed industrial toxic waste reservoir, exacerbated such risks. The elevated levels of arsenic and mercury in the red sludge could pose serious health risks for the affected population, especially if the toxic material has entered into the food chain.