Number of swimming spots failing water quality standards rises to one in 12

The number of official swimming spots in England failing water quality standards has risen to one in 12, according to the latest figures from the UK's environmental regulator.

The Environment Agency monitored the water quality of 450 sites last year, and found 8.2% of them had failed tests - leading 37 areas to be classified as "poor".

Most sites met minimum standards for water quality, with more than 64% rated "excellent".

Tests for harmful bacteria take place throughout the designated swimming season between May and September. Water quality readings from the past four years are used to classify each site as either excellent, good, sufficient or poor.

The results also revealed a gap in water quality between sea swimming spots and rivers. Some 95% of coastal bathing areas met minimum standards, while only 53% of inland waters were classed as sufficient or better.

Water Minister Emma Hardy said the government was working to strengthen regulation of the water industry by putting companies under special measures.

She said: “These figures are unacceptable and show that too many of our popular swimming spots are polluted.”

The latest figures saw 27 newly-designated bathing waters given a rating for the first time, leading to a slight increase in the number of "excellent" ratings compared to last year - but the percentage of sites making the grade has dropped.

The number of sites rated "poor" has jumped to the highest level since the current classification system began in 2015.

However, officials from the Environment Agency said this was in part due to the designation of new areas which weren't previously managed to meet bathing water standards.

Many of these new sites failing to make the grade are river waters, which campaigners say highlights how much pollution is being pumped into rivers and estuaries.

River Action chief executive James Wallace said the results were an “international embarrassment”, and called for permits to be introduced requiring water companies to remove bacteria and pollutants from bathing sites.

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He said: “The Government’s own data shows that swimming in our inland bathing sites poses serious health risks, highlighting the failure of regulators to protect waterways from polluters."

Giles Bristow, chief executive of Surfers Against Sewage, said the bathing water classification regime “isn’t just inadequate, it’s misleading and needs radical reform”.

He referred to Trevaunance Cove in Cornwall, which received an excellent rating in this year’s results, but where community testing had highlighted consistently high levels of pollution in a stream running on to the beach.

Environment Agency chairman Alan Lovell said they showed there was still more to be done to tackle pollution.

“While overall bathing water quality has improved in recent decades due to targeted investment and robust regulation, today’s results show there is much work still to do, particularly to bring our inland bathing waters up to standard," he said.

“We are working with the water industry, farmers and local authorities and are investing in our regulation, with more people on the ground, updated digital assets and new legal powers to improve our bathing waters for all.”

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