Surfers Against Sewage Are Calling For A Review of the UK’s Bathing Water Sample Sites. Welsh Report Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) believe the weekly bathing water samples required by the EU Bathing Water Directive should be taken from the area of the bathing water that presents bathers and water users with the greatest source of pollution, if a significant amount of bathers and recreational water users can be expected to regularly use that area of beach. Surfers Against Sewage are concerned that 45 designated bathing water sample spots around the UK do not provide a true guide to the water quality that a bather or water user might experience at our bathing waters, including 11 in Wales. The implications are incredible concerning, as our widely promoted water quality results could be misleading the public about the potential health risk at a number of the UK’s bathing water. The Bathing Water Directive states (Art3.3) the monitoring point should be where most bathers are expected or the greatest risk of pollution is expected, according to the bathing water profile. In the UK Regulations (Schedule 4.1) Defra have transposed the obligation to locate the monitoring point where the most bathers are expected. This was part of the original transposition The European Commission’s Reference Document for the monitoring and assessment requirements of the revised Bathing Water Directive published August 2014 states: • A bathing water is not defined by its physical size. The length of its corresponding beach can vary between bathing waters and the distribution of bathers within a bathing water can be uneven. If there are, or could be, significant differences in water quality within any discrete area, then appropriate measures (such as ensuring monitoring targets the area presenting 1 the greatest risk to bathers, or sub-dividing the area into separately identified bathing waters) must be taken. • A single location for collecting a sample should be designated regardless of the length of a bathing beach provided it is representative of the quality of the entire bathing water and a large numbers of bathers are distributed evenly along a bathing beach. Where large numbers of bathers are distributed unevenly along the length of a beach or a bathing water does not meet the requirements of uniform water quality that would satisfy the conditions for a grouped bathing water, it must be separated into individual bathing waters. Surfers Against Sewage have also included bathing waters where sample spots appear to be placed away from the majority of bathing resources. Coastal observations suggest the majority of beach users utilize the areas surrounding the entrance to the beach. Only the minority seems to arrive at the beach and walk a significant distance from the main access route/car park/infrastructure. For this reason the recommendations given below are not only based around local knowledge from SAS’s extensive regional rep network but also the positioning of car parks, beach access routes, cafes, shops, lifeguard huts etc. There are 11 sites highlighted for review in this document and their regional distribution are shown below: 2 South Wales East Wales North Wales Sandy Bay, Porthcawl Broad Haven Central Colwyn Bay Aberafan Aberporth Rhyl Swansea Bay Clarach South Rhyl East Amroth Central Aberdyfi 3 Surfers Against Sewage recommendation to review the sampling point at Sandy Bay, Porthcawl Background Sandy Beach is a long, gently sloping, sandy beach with a small harbour at the western end backed by sand dunes to the east and a promenade and Coney Island Amusement Park to the west. The amusement park with kiosks, cafes, restaurants, bars, pubs, fish and chip shops, parking and toilets is located just behind the beach with more facilities available in the town. Swimming, bathing and surfing are all carried out here. With relatively consistent surf, sheltered beach break peaks can be found here offshore in NNW winds, preferred swell direction is WSW. There are several sewer overflows on either side of Sandy Bay with three to the east at Trecco Bay and more to the west. Reasons for proposed change Sandy Beach, Porthcawl is a long, popular beach backed by a promenade and amusement park. A CSO discharges to the sea at the western end of the beach which is approximately 300m from the sampling point, located at the centre of the beach. Due to the popularity of the beach and the proximity of Porthcawl and the seaside infrastructure that accompanies it the entire beach is used for bathing with the car park also located at the western side, close to the CSO. 4 5 Car parks, amusement park, The sampling point several restaurants, cafes, beach access hundred metres from the CSO etc The CSO discharges at the The proposed sampling point is western end of the bay at a point close to the main car park and beach access route Recommendation Based on the information provided above, we would recommend that the sampling point be moved to the western end of the bay to be closer to the main bather area and the CSO. 6 Surfers Against Sewage recommendation to review the sampling point at Aberafan Background A 4km stretch of beach located between the Rivers Afan and Neath, Aberafan (or Aberavon) is backed by Port Talbot and just east of Swansea. Aberafan is long, sandy beach popular with surfers with heavy industry and the relevant infrastructure behind. The usual facilities expected of a large town can be found behind the beach with cafes, restaurants, shops, parking and toilets can all be found close to the beach. Swimming, bathing, body boarding, paddle boarding and surfing are all popular here, however beginners should be wary of the breakwater. While there are no sewer overflows discharging directly onto the beach here there are a large number that discharge into the rivers at either end of the beach. Reasons for proposed change Aberafan is a popular beach and, with the large town of Port Talbot behind it, the entire length of it is used by bathers and water users. With many sewer overflows discharging into the rivers at either end of the beach and the sheer size of the beach, Against Sewage would expect multiple bathing water sample spots where bathers are using the sea. This is particularly true at the eastern end which is popular with surfers and water users and is several hundred metres from the sampling point. 7 8 The River Neath also has a number of sewer overflows discharging into it The current sampling point is some distance from the CSOs Several sewer overflows discharge upstream into the River Afan Recommendation Based on the information provided above, we would recommend that, due to the popularity of this stretch of coastline and the infrastructure behind the beach, the beach be re-designated as a number of bathing waters to best serve bathers/water users. 9 Surfers Against Sewage recommendation to review the sampling point at Swansea Bay Background Swansea Bay is a 9km stretch of sand, pebble and mud flats that stretches from Mumbles Head to the River Tawe. It slopes gently and at low tide the waters-edge is a long way from the beach front. Restaurants, cafes, toilets, shops, parking, a University and a slipway are available here with more facilities in the nearby city of Swansea. Sailing, boating, power boating, jet skiing, canoeing, kayaking, swimming, surfing and bathing all take place here. It is also a Watersports Centre of Excellence. Numerous sewer overflows discharge into the sea and waterways here including several that discharge into the River Tawe at the eastern end of the beach. Reasons for proposed change Fronting a relatively built up area, with all the relevant infrastructure, Swansea Bay is a long, popular stretch of beach with numerous river and sewer overflows discharging across its length. There are also a number of main bather areas a significant distance (several kilometres) from the sampling point such as in Mayals to the west and the University, around 1km to the west of the sampling point, close to a CSO and river discharge. 10 11 Recommended sampling spots are at popular bather areas. Sampling spot CSOs/streams Recommendation Based on the information provided above, we recommend re-designating this bathing water as multiple bathing waters with sampling points at popular bather areas such as the University and in front of the main car park and beach facilities. It is a 9km stretch incorporating different communities, different facilities and different sewer overflows. It is also very popular with bathers and other water users. 12 Surfers Against Sewage recommendation to review the sampling point at Amroth Central Background Amroth Central is a 4km long sandy beach backed by a pebble bank and promenade. Low rocky cliffs flank the beach while its length is broken up by groynes. Amroth slopes relatively steeply before flattening out into the Bristol Channel. At low tide the shallow waters are some way from the back of the beach. The beach is situated in the Carmarthen Bay Special Area of Conservation and lies within Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Facilities here include a couple of shops, a restaurant and café, parking and toilets. The beach is popular for swimming, jet skiing, windsurfing and fishing while three sewer outfalls and streams discharge across its length. Reasons for proposed change The sampling point for Amroth Central is located in the centre of the beach close to a CSO and river, however it is flanked by other sewer overflows. Approximately 400m to the west can be found a car park, shops, cafés restaurants and watersports hire, all located close to sewer overflow and stream discharge.