Top water quality at Devon and Cornwall beaches
The majority of designated bathing waters across Devon and Cornwall have a good or excellent rating for water quality.
Testing the water quality at one of the designated bathing waters
It is officially the summer holidays, and as millions of people flock to the coast, the Environment Agency is flying the flag for top-notch bathing waters in Devon and Cornwall.
Area Environment Manager Bruce Newport said:
“There are 150 designated bathing waters across our patch and the majority have a good or excellent rating for water quality. Our work to improve water quality has really paid off - we now have miles of unpolluted coastline for everyone to enjoy.
“Our scientists carry out water sampling and monitoring seven days a week throughout the summer, and we have an incident team on standby to swiftly respond to reports of water pollution.
“We want holidaymakers and residents to enjoy themselves without pollution worries as they visit our beaches this summer.
“If anyone would like further reassurance before dipping their toes, the Environment Agency’s Swimfo bathing water website is a fantastic resource, featuring up to date water quality data about every designated beach across Devon, Cornwall, and beyond.”
The Environment Agency regularly monitors water quality at designated beaches between May and September which is the official summer bathing season. The results are used to classify beaches and continually improve water quality.
Dips in water quality can occur due to factors like rainfall, wind and high tides. If this happens, the Environment Agency works with local beach controllers to keep people informed of the situation. This is part of the ongoing service provide by the Environment Agency so people can choose where to bathe this summer.
Ends
Notes for Editors:
The Environment Agency works with local authorities to ensure there is signage at swimming locations to inform bathers about water quality.
Information and advice on all 424 designated bathing water sites nationally, including any forecasted and temporary drops in water quality, is published on the Swimfo: Find a Bathing Water website to enable bathers to make informed decisions about where and when to swim, particularly if there is a risk of pollution and associated health risk.
A Pollution Risk Forecast for a particular bathing water does not mean there is an actual pollution alert. The system uses historical data to forecast whether there could be a pollution issue.