Studies show that minority and low-income populations often receive lower quality drinking water, increasing their risk for waterborne diseases and adverse health effects. However, most research on this topic has focused on the United States, Canada, South Africa, and India, leaving Scandinavia unexplored. This study examines whether similar disparities exist in Sweden by analysing drinking water access in the Gothenburg region. Using geospatial analysis to intersect drinking water provision areas with socio-economic data, we compare private well-users with municipally supplied populations and then assess whether disparities also appear within municipal supply systems, considering water quality parameters, water price, and pipe breaks. The analysis reveals two key patterns. First, untreated drinking water use among private well-owners is slightly more common in socio-economically advantaged communities, contrasting with evidence from other regions where exposed private well-use is typically associated with disadvantaged groups. Second, within the municipal supply, we find no clear regionwide trends, although the tail end of the distribution shows disparities between the wealthiest and less affluent municipalities, especially in microbial and chemical test results with noted issues and in pipe-break frequency. Sweden’s high-resolution socio-economic data and municipal collaboration in sharing drinking water service areas enable these detailed assessments without relying on coarse geospatial proxies. By identifying disparities in both private and municipal drinking water access, this study provides a structured approach that can support Swedish water-expansion planning and contributes to emerging discussions on water justice in high-income countries.

Thermal stratification (ThS) in water bodies, particularly during warmer seasons, severely degrades water quality by reducing oxygen levels, leading to detrimental ecological impacts. Artificial destratification technologies have emerged as potential solutions to mitigate these effects and improve water quality. This systematic review examines 194 studies from databases such as Web of Science, Scopus, MDPI, and ASCE, covering research from 1990 to 2024. The review evaluates various destratification methods, including mechanical mixers, bubble aerators, floating intakes, suspended curtains, multi-level offtakes (MLOs), and gradual entrainment level inverters (GELs), for their effectiveness in improving oxygenation and reducing nutrient buildup. It highlights that bubble aerators perform best in smaller water bodies, while mechanical mixers, though less common, offer cost-effective solutions for larger systems. However, mixers alone show limited effectiveness in large reservoirs, and their combination with bubble aerators can enhance system performance at increased operational costs. This review fills a critical gap in the literature by synthesizing available data on destratification technologies and their role in restoring ecological balance in stratified waters. The findings provide valuable insights for improving water pollution control strategies, supporting ecosystem health, and guiding future research and policy development to address the real-world challenges posed by ThS.