Sandsfoot Castle beach, which is listed on the Safer Seas Service list of beaches with real-time sewage and pollution information. Picture Graham Hunt
Campaign Manager of Surfers Against Sewage, Andy Cummins (front) and local volunteers get hands on for a beach clean in Dorset
A SAFER Seas Service has been launched in a bid to better inform bathers of water quality – with beaches in both Weymouth and Portland on the list.
As the bathing season starts again, Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) has launched an updated and improved Safer Seas Service which now lists water quality in real-time at 81 beaches along the south coast.
In Dorset, the Safer Seas Service beaches include Bowleaze Cove in Weymouth, Lulworth Cove, Portland Harbour at Sandsfoot Castle and Castle Cove, Seatown Beach in Chideock, Weymouth Central Marina and Weymouth Lodmoor.
The Safer Seas Service protects water users from sewage and diffuse pollution in real-time and this year’s service has increased the number of beaches covered by the alerts – responding to both raw sewage discharges and diffuse pollution incidents.
The service protects water users from these pollution events and directs them towards beaches with better water quality.
SAS campaigns director Andy Cummins said: “Real-time information on water quality is vital to ensure beach users are able to avoid pollution incidents and enjoy the safest and best beaches we have to offer.
“If you’re going to the beach this summer make sure you download the free Safer Seas Service and know before you go.”
During the 2014 bathing season, the Safer Seas Service issued 212,772 free pollution warnings to 14,129 users in response to 771 diffuse pollution incidents and 786 sewer overflow events.
Since the start of the service, SAS has warned of more than 6,238 individual pollution incidents for free and in real-time.
However, the Safer Seas Service doesn’t just issue timely warning about pollution. It also reinforces the positive news when beaches are enjoying good water quality.
The service’s pollution history function means bathers can identify how their beach is performing over the course of the bathing season and compare it with previous years.
This informs users if pollution events are a regular occurrence at their beach or an unfortunate one off. The service states that harmful pathogens present in sewage and diffuse pollution can impact coastal waters even on the sunniest of days.
Unfortunately these pollution events are often difficult to identify in coastal waters and are often missed by the weekly bathing water tests.
For more information on the Safer Seas Service visit the website at sas.org.uk/safer-seas-service/