Welsh Government
 Printable version
|
All Welsh waters reach tough new EU standards
New EU water bathing results published yesterday show all identified bathing waters in Wales have met new stricter European classifications for bathing water quality.
A new system for testing bathing water across all EU member states has been introduced in 2015 which aims to improve bathing waters across the EU.
82 of the 102 bathing waters in Wales achieved the higher classification of excellent, with 16 achieving good and 4 sufficient. No Welsh bathing water was classed as poor.
Welcoming the results, Natural Resources Minister Carl Sargeant said:
“One of the biggest attractions for the millions of tourists coming to Wales every year is our beautiful coastline. By meeting these tough new EU classifications all visitors to the Welsh seaside can enjoy the high bathing water quality they have come to expect when visiting Wales.
“We now need to keep up the high standards that have been set so we can all continue to enjoy the environmental, social and economic benefits our bathing waters bring.”
The bathing water statistics in Wales are taken from samples taken by Natural Resources Wales at regular intervals during the bathing season (15 May to 30 September) and are verified by the European Commission. There are currently 102 identified bathing waters in Wales.
101 are beaches and one, Llyn Padarn, a lake, in Gwynedd.
Emyr Roberts, Chief Executive of Natural Resources Wales, said:
“It’s great news that all of the Welsh bathing waters passed the quality test this year. Even with the tough new EU standards, over three-quarters of our bathing waters were of an excellent standard this summer.
“With clean bathing waters, our coast and natural environment will continue to provide huge benefits to the people of Wales and to our visitors. A seaside holiday or day out at the beach is amongst the most popular activities for many families. So this achievement is great news for the people, environment and economy of Wales.
“Our challenge now is to maintain this standard, and we will continue to work hard to protect and enhance our natural resources, and to ensure that our water quality remains high.”
