More European sites meet excellent bathing water quality standards than ever before

More than 85% of bathing water sites monitored across Europe in 2016 met the most stringent ‘excellent' quality standards — meaning they were mostly free from pollutants harmful to human health and the environment, according to the annual bathing water quality report published today.

Over 96% of bathing water sites met minimum quality requirements set out under European Union rules.

The report from the European Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA) confirms a positive 40-year trend of increasingly cleaner water at beaches and swimming spots across Europe. The assessment compiled analyses of water sampled at more than 21 000 coastal and inland bathing sites and gives a good indication where the best sites with the highest water quality are likely to be found this summer. Bathing water is sampled and monitored for contamination by faecal pollution from sewage or livestock.