Zero pollution: most European bathing waters meet the highest quality standards

Annual published annual report on bathing waters it is shown that in 2020 almost 83 % European bathing sites met the most stringent European Union water quality standards, namely the quality of their water. The latest assessment prepared by the European Environment Agency (EVA) in cooperation with the European Commission is based on the monitoring of 22 276 bathing sites across Europe in 2020. These are the bathing sites of THE EU Member States, Albania and Switzerland, monitored in 2020. 01/06/2021

The share of coastal and inland bathing sites whose water quality is excellent has stabilised around 85 % in recent years and was 82.8 % throughout Europe in 2020. In 2020, minimum standards for water quality were met 93 % of the monitored sites and in five countries: Cyprus, Austria, Greece, Malta and Croatia, 95 % or more of bathing waters were of excellent quality.

Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginia Mucovich: The quality of bathing waters is still high in Europe and is a good news for European citizens who are going to beaches and bathing sites this summer. It should be thanked for more than 40 years of bathing water for the implementation of the Directive, a thorough expert work and cooperation. The zero-pollution action plan adopted in May will help to keep the waters healthy and safe, but our seas and rivers are clean. '

Executive Director of the European Environment Agency, Hans Breininkss: “Four decades have been working to prevent and reduce pollution and the quality of European bathing waters is constantly high. EU legislation has not only helped to increase the overall quality but also to find out where specific measures are needed. '

Two thirds of the bathing sites are located on the European coast. This assessment is a good indication of where the quality of the bathing water is the highest. The quality of several bathing waters in the current assessment could not be classified as a sufficient number of samples were not collected due to the pandemic constraints.

In 2020, 296 or 1.3 % European bathing water quality was poor. Although the share of poor quality bathing waters has decreased slightly since 2013, problems still exist, particularly in the assessment of pollution sources and implementation of integrated water management measures. In bathing areas where it is difficult to identify the origin or causes of pollution, specific research on sources of contamination should be carried out.

In accordance with Zero pollution action plan and Biodiversity strategy The Commission recently started Review of the bathing water directive. The objective is to assess whether the current rules remain valid for the purpose of protecting public health and improving the quality of water, or, however, the existing regulatory framework should be improved, in particular by addressing new parameters. As part of this process, the Commission will soon start communicating with stakeholders through: online public consultation.

This year's report conclusions will be set out on 2 June session IN THE EU Green Week, which is devoted to zero pollution this year. In addition to this annual report on bathing waters, EVA has also published an updated interactive map showing the assessment of the quality of each bathing water. You can also see the latest reports on each country and learn more about the implementation of the Directive in different countries.