Bathing water quality and health implications

Considerable controversy exists with respect to water quality al bathing beaches. In the UK, South Wales beaches appear to be at the forefront regarding these views. An exhaustive study investigating water quality and health was carried out at Barry Island Wales during the summer tourist season. The beach is a very popular holiday resort and attracts some 850,000 during the summer months. It is composed of fine grained sand backed by a sea wall. Water samples were taken at two hourly intervals between 11:00 and 15:00 hours over a 6 day period during a hot August period in 1995. Testing was carried out for faecal coliforms and faecal streptococci. Simultaneously, a very detailed questionnaire (n=1276) was distributed to beach users. The questions related to health, food consumed, family history, entry to the water or not, etc. Ten days later a follow up telephone questionnaire was carried out specifically to find if any person had contacted for example, ear problems, gastrointestinal symptoms etc. Twenty four percent of swimmers had illnesses compared to 5% for non-swimmers. Levels of faecal coliforms and faecal streptococci were found to be significantly high (45,000 and 16,000 respectively per 100ml). The survey was continued in 1996 at three South Wales beaches. Emphasis was placed on public perception of beaches and attitudes to seaside award schemes such as the European Blue Rag investigating the legislative framework through which water quality is controlled and impact on the beach consumer.