In 2008 we measured the water quality at 495 bathing waters in England and Wales. Almost all bathing waters (97 per cent) met the minimum standards.
Overview
This summer was the wettest on record but despite this nearly 97 per cent of bathing waters in England and Wales met the water quality standards required by law. In 2006 bathing water quality was the best ever.
How clean are bathing waters? » What is being down to improve bathing water quality? » Blue Flag Awards »Find out more
In 2008 we measured the water quality at 495 bathing waters in England and Wales. Almost all bathing waters (97 per cent) met the minimum standards and 355 (72 per cent) were clean enough to meet the much stricter European guideline standards (
Indicator: Bathing water compliance).
Bathing water quality has improved significantly since 1990. Between 1998 and 2008 the number of bathing waters meeting the European guideline standards increased by a third. This is largely due to water companies investing to improve the quality of their sewage discharges. There’s been a small decline in bathing water quality since 2006, due to diffuse pollution from agricultural and urban sources, and storm sewage overflows operate more frequently.
Find out how clean the water is at your local bathing water by entering your postcode or town name at Whats in your Back Yard? During the bathing season (May to September) you can also see our weekly bathing water sampling results.
We play a significant role in deciding what environmental improvements the water industry should make. Further sewerage improvements are planned in the water companies’ environment programmes.
But there is also a challenge to tackle sources of diffuse pollution. Examples of this sort of pollution include water runoff from farmland contaminated by livestock waste, road water runoff in urban areas and discharges from storm water drainage systems where sewers have been illegally connected into them. We are already starting to tackle these problems using initiatives such as Catchment Sensitive Farming and Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS).
A new Bathing Water Directive will became law in the UK in March 2008 and will take effect from 2015. This will set even stricter water quality standards. We are carrying out investigation to identify and tackle the sources of pollution to meet the new standards.
Environment Agency information on:
Bathing Waters Directive
