Good news for Causeway Coast sea swimmers as Minister Muir announces the 2024 Bathing Water results

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The Causeway Coast’s bathing waters continued to perform well in 2024 despite the rather gloomy, wet summer.

All 26 identified bathing waters in Northern Ireland have met the required standards for water quality when measured against the standards for faecal indicator organisms.

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22 bathing waters are classified as ‘Excellent’, a prerequisite for the coveted Blue Flag Award and the highest water quality standard, an increase from 18 in 2023. Two have met the ‘Good’ standard and two ‘Sufficient’ standard. No bathing water failed to meet the minimum standard.

In addition to sampling at identified sites, for the second year the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), who manage the bathing water programme, undertook sampling at ‘Candidate’ bathing waters that had been recommended as bathing sites by the Bathing Water Review conducted by the Department in 2022/2023.

Ballycastle was just one of the sites around the Causeway Coast and Glens area to be marked 'excellent' for bathing water in the 2024 results. Credit NI WorldBallycastle was just one of the sites around the Causeway Coast and Glens area to be marked 'excellent' for bathing water in the 2024 results. Credit NI World
Ballycastle was just one of the sites around the Causeway Coast and Glens area to be marked 'excellent' for bathing water in the 2024 results. Credit NI World

This included Northern Ireland’s first Inland Bathing Water at Rea’s Wood, Antrim. The seven ‘Candidate’ bathing waters were also measured against the standards for faecal indicator organisms; one was classified as ‘Excellent’, two as ‘Good’, three at Sufficient and one failed to meet the minimum standards.

The 2024 results for the 26 Identified Bathing Waters are:

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Excellent Quality: Magilligan Benone, Magilligan Downhill, Castlerock, Portstewart, Portrush Mill, Portrush Curran, Portrush Whiterocks, Portballintrae Salmon Rock, Ballycastle, Carnlough, Ballygally, Brown’s Bay, Helen’s Bay, Crawfordsburn, Groomsport, Millisle, Cloughey, Kilclief, Ballyhornan, Tyrella, Murlough, Cranfield.

Good Quality: Waterfoot, Ballywalter. Sufficient Quality: Ballyholme, Newcastle.

The 2024 results for the seven Candidate Bathing Waters are:

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Excellent Quality: Portmuck. Good Quality: Cushendall, Drain’s Bay. Sufficient: Brompton, Bangor, Donaghadee, Warrenpoint. Poor Quality: Rea’s Wood, Antrim.

Minister Muir said: “Even with the wet summer and poor weather it is very encouraging to see so many of Northern Ireland’s bathing waters maintaining high standards for water quality. The addition of another year’s data has improved the classifications at some of the candidate sites. However, a full set of four years is required to classify these with confidence.

"Unfortunately, as with 2023, this season was also dominated by coverage of the blue-green algae events in Lough Neagh, impacting the candidate site at Rea’s Wood in Antrim.

"I am committed to tackling the issues and have published an Action Plan to clean up Lough Neagh and have already delivered on a number of the commitments. "