Home / Environment / Jersey Beaches: Excellent Water Quality Restored
Jersey Beaches: Excellent Water Quality Restored
29 May
Summary
- All 16 Jersey bays now have excellent water quality ratings.
- Previous tests found unacceptable bacteria levels due to heavy rain.
- Public advised to avoid sea for 48 hours after rainfall.
Bathing waters across Jersey have been declared "excellent" a week after initial tests detected bacterial problems in some locations. Routine testing conducted over Tuesday and Wednesday confirmed that all 16 bays monitored by Infrastructure and Environment now meet high water quality standards.
These positive results follow earlier samples taken on May 18 and 19, which had identified "unacceptable levels of bacteria" at Plemont, Grouville, Harve des Pas, and Victoria Pool. Heavy rainfall was cited as the cause for the temporary decline in water quality.
In response, the government reiterated Public Health advice recommending that individuals avoid entering the sea for at least 48 hours after periods of significant rainfall. This precaution is due to potential temporary impacts on water quality from surface run-off. An "excellent" water quality classification means samples contain 250 or fewer Escherichia coli per 100ml and 100 or fewer Intestinal enterococci per 100ml.
Beaches on the island are subject to weekly bacteriological quality sampling from May 11 to September 22. Seawater monitoring serves as a key indicator of prevailing conditions and reflects the water quality at the specific time of sampling.
