Rain can’t wash away Ireland’s bathing water quality gains

Heavy rainfall continues to affect Ireland’s bathing waters, leading to runoff of contaminants from land and overflows from wastewater treatment systems.

That is according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which this week published its Bathing Water Quality in Ireland report for 2024.

The report shows that the quality of water at most of Ireland’s bathing sites remains high.

81% of bathing areas achieved an ‘Excellent’ rating, while 96% met or exceeded the minimum ‘Sufficient’ standard. The number of beaches with poor water quality fell to two, down from five in 2023. Wastewater overflows, dog fouling, and misconnected foul drains are the main sources of pollution at these sites.

The EPA noted that heavy rainfall, along with wastewater overflows and runoff from farmland and urban areas, can cause short-term drops in water quality. Intense, localised rainfall—particularly in the west and north-west—led to bathing restrictions and beach closures to protect public health. However, the overall number of restrictions was lower in 2024 than in 2023.

Dr Eimear Cotter, Director of the EPA’s Office of Evidence and Assessment, said, “Another season of heavy rainfall has highlighted the need to build climate resilience into how we manage our bathing waters. The west and north-west experienced particularly heavy rainfall last August, forcing many beaches to close to safeguard swimmers.”

She added that local authorities must enhance their understanding of how pollution from heavy rainfall impacts beaches, especially as more people are swimming outdoors year-round.

Throughout the bathing season, water quality updates and incident reports are published on www.beaches.ie. Some local authorities also monitor water quality outside the official bathing season, with those results shared online where available.

The full Bathing Water Quality in Ireland 2024 report, along with an infographic and map of bathing sites, is available on the EPA website.