| Series Title | European Voice | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Series Details | 30/07/98, Volume 4, Number 30 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publication Date | 30/07/1998 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content Type | News | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date: 30/07/1998 By HAVING their beaches branded as substandard in the European Commission's annual bathing water report can seriously affect the local economies of coastal tourist towns. If a resort's livelihood revolves around time spent on the beach and in the sea, bathing water polluted with chemicals, oil or sewage is hardly a major selling point. According to the Madrid-based World Tourism Organisation (WTO), knowing that a potential holiday destination is clean and safe is a key determining factor for most people planning a vacation. “Tourism is probably the industry which is most affected by health and safety concerns,” explained WTO spokeswoman Deborah Luhrman. “They play a huge part in which destination people pick.” However, the real impact dirty swimming water has on a local economy also depends on how much time people holidaying in a particular seaside resort spend in the water, rather than occupying themselves with other distractions. In this respect, resorts in cold and rainy northern Europe seem to have a natural advantage over their sunny southern counterparts. This year's bathing water report identifies Blackpool as having some of the dirtiest swimming water in Europe, yet local officials in the north-west of England resort say they have not noticed many tourists turning away in disgust at the town's unclean seas. “We did have quite a poor season last year, but that was more to do with the weather than anything else,” said Craig Noonan of Blackpool borough council. He pointed out that the most recent research carried out by the council showed the majority of people visited Blackpool to enjoy its funfairs, amusement arcades and entertainment complexes rather than the often rainswept beaches. But he admitted that having a reputation for possessing some of Europe's most polluted bathing water was not an advantage for the town. “We would like water quality to improve and we are working very closely with the relevant agencies to see that this happens,” he said. However, carrying out such improvements is more complicated than it may sound. The main problem stems from the number of different organisations responsible for maintaining water quality in the Blackpool region. Despite the fact that the local council is in charge of most activities in the town, water quality is the responsibility of North West Water. North West Water, however, only takes care of water supplies on land. Once they flow into the sea, they fall into the ambit of the UK's Environment Agency, whose job it is to monitor water quality. In addition, much of the pollution in the Blackpool area comes from private industrial plants situated away to the north of the town. Such a patchwork of responsibility for water quality is a problem in most EU member states, which is why the Commission has come forward with plans to introduce a framework water directive. This law would ensure that legislation governing quality standards was properly coordinated, as the water in question flowed from springs through rivers, lakes and towns into the sea. Quality of bathing water on EU beaches
All beaches are awarded a green, orange, red or black circle. Those receiving a blue award automatically get a green circle as well. Source: European Commission 'Quality of Bathing Water' report, 1997 season |
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| Subject Categories | Environment |
