[T]ODAY marks the start of the bathing water season – and the great news is that Copeland’s seas are clean and safe to enjoy.
All four amenity beaches met the required water quality standards, with Silecroft and St Bees classed as excellent, Seascale as ‘good’ and Haverigg ‘sufficient.’
Coun Allan Holliday, Copeland’s Portfolio Holder for Strategic and Regulatory Services, said: “The recent patches of warm weather mean people have already been enjoying our stunning coastline. Hopefully with the start of the bathing season, even more will come and dip a toe in the waters. We have amazing coastal scenery, good facilities and community events, and we look forward to visitors and locals making the most of it.”
There are four classifications of bathing waters: excellent, good, sufficient or poor. Signs are displayed at each of Copeland’s four amenity beaches, highlighting the current classification as well as other useful information. The quality of the water can vary from day to day depending on factors like rainfall and run-off from farm land.
The current classifications, and results of the samples taken throughout the bathing season, are also available online through the Environment Agency’s site: http://environment.data.gov.uk/bwq/profiles/
Copeland Council is part of the Turning Tides partnership, which works with the Environment Agency, United Utilities, councils and environmental organisations to invest in clean bathing waters.
Although the standards of water quality in Copeland remain high, there always more that can be done. Residents can find lots of ways to help preserve bathing water quality by visiting www.lovemybeach.org.
