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Profile for every bathing water site

www.environment-agency.gov.uk

28 March 2011

Profile for every bathing water site
28-Mar-2011
The Environment Agency is today publishing detailed profiles on the cleanliness of 493 bathing water sites across England and Wales.

The Environment Agency is today publishing detailed profiles on the cleanliness of 493 bathing water sites across England and Wales.

The new bathing water profiles, online at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/bathingwaters, include maps, photos and links to the latest water quality results for each of the country’s designated coastal and inland bathing sites.

This information, together with a summary of how the beach has performed against bathing water quality ratings over the last few years, will enable beach goers to compare beaches before they visit.

Last year, a record number of beaches and inland bathing waters in England and Wales reached the highest European standards in water quality. Over eight in ten beaches met the EU “guideline” standard across England and Wales – compared to just three in ten in 1990.

The Environment Agency has helped to direct some £8bn of water company investment to upgrade the country’s sewage system and reduce pollution in the past two decades, leading to huge improvements in bathing water quality.

However, there is more work to do to drive further improvements in water quality. The Environment Agency is working hard with others to identify and tackle sources of pollution at all bathing sites.

In the South West, all 191 designated bathing waters in the region have been profiled. It is the first time the Environment Agency has published bathing water profiles, and is encouraging feedback to help make them as useful as possible for everyone.

‘Our new profiles provide the most comprehensive information yet on the cleanliness of bathing waters, helping the public to make more informed choices about the best locations to bathe,’ said Alan Burrows from the Environment Agency.

‘A record number of beaches reached the highest European standards last year and the Environment Agency is working with beach users, local authorities, farmers and water companies to drive further improvements and tackle all sources of pollution.’

They also identify potential sources of pollution at each bathing water, such as polluted rainfall runoff from agricultural land, and describe the work that has been carried out or is being planned, to minimise the impact from them.