Ireland being a nation surrounded by water has, of course, a lot of seawater. Our beaches are subjected to a European standard known as the Blue Flag award.

Along with criteria such as Education, Litter and Safety, there is the also the issue of Water Quality.

Under this heading, beaches must meet the following:

• The beach must fully comply with the water quality sampling and frequency requirements.
• The beach must fully comply with the standards and requirements for water quality analysis.
• No industrial, waste-water or sewage-related discharges should affect the beach area.
• The beach must comply with the Blue Flag requirements for the microbiological parameter faecal coli bacteria (E.coli) and intestinal enterococci/streptococci.
• The beach must comply with the Blue Flag requirements for physical and chemical parameters.
• The water must be sampled at least every 30 days during the bathing season and at least five samples be taken

The limits to achieve excellent water quality status for the Blue Flag are 250cfu/100ml for E.coli and 100cfu/100ml for Intestinal enterococci. The limits have to be met for both parameters.

If you feel that the water that you swim in is contaminated, then call us and we can come and take a sample, using the correct sampling methods and determine how they compare to the relevant standards.