Beachwatch A program of the OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENT & HERITAGE

Northern report card 2017-18

This report card provides a long-term assessment of how suitable a site is for swimming in the Northern Sydney region. Monitored locations include ocean beaches from Palm Beach to Shelly Beach, estuarine areas in and sites in Lagoon.

Best beaches Palm Beach, Whale Beach, Avalon Beach, Bilgola Beach, Newport Beach, Bungan Beach, Mona Vale Beach, South Beach, The Basin and Great Mackerel Beach. 20 Ocean beaches These sites had excellent water quality and were suitable for swimming almost all of the time. 10 Estuarine sites Estuarine and lagoon swimming sites did not perform as well as ocean beaches due to lower levels of flushing which increase the 2 Lake/Lagoon sites time needed to disperse and dilute pollution inputs, taking longer to recover from stormwater events. 0 Ocean baths Rainfall impacts Rainfall is the major driver of pollution to recreational waters, generating stormwater runoff and triggering discharges from the wastewater treatment and transport system.

Monitoring in Sydney Beach Suitability Grades for Recreational water quality has been monitored in the Sydney region swimming sites since 1989 by the Office of Environment and Heritage’s Beachwatch in the Northern Program. Sydney region

32 Very good/Good

Beachwatch issues daily beach pollution forecasts to enable beach goers 0 Fair to make informed decisions about where and when to swim. 0 Poor/Very poor For additional information see the State Of The Beaches 2017–18 Report at www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/water/beaches/reporting environment.nsw.gov.au/beachwatch G 73 Barrenjoey Beach Beachwatch Northern Sydney VG 100 Great Mackerel Beach report card 2017–18 VG 100 Palm Beach

VG 98 The Basin VG 100 Whale Beach 100% G 100 Paradise Beach Baths swimming G 100 North Scotland Island sites graded

G 100 Clareville Beach Good or

VG 100 Avalon Beach Very good

G 100 Taylors Point Baths

VG 96 Bilgola Beach Beach suitability grade G 100 Elvina Bay VG Very good VG 100 Newport Beach G Good G 100 South Scotland Island F Fair VG 100 Bungan Beach P Poor G 83 Bayview Baths Council VP Very poor VG 98 Mona Vale Beach

Warriewood Beach G 100 Dry weather swimmability

G 98 Turimetta Beach 100 Percentage (%) of dry Narrabeen Lagoon weather samples within G 94 (Birdwood Park) the safe swimming limit

G 98 North Narrabeen Beach

G 86 Bilarong Reserve

G 100 Collaroy Beach

G 100 Long Reef Beach

G 98 Beach

G 98 North Curl Curl Beach

VG 100 South Curl Curl Beach

G 98 Freshwater Beach

G 98 Queenscli€ Beach

G 98 North Steyne Beach

G 95 South Steyne Beach

G 97 Shelly Beach

Published by Office of Environment and Heritage October 2018 OEH 2018/0332 October. 2018. Photo, Cameron Board/OEH