The European Commission published a report on the condition of bathing areas. Poland is in a disgraceful place
The European Environment Agency has published a report on the cleanliness of bathing waters in the European Union, Albania and Switzerland. Poland has the worst result in the EU.
According to the latest annual report of the European Environment Agency on bathing water, the vast majority of this type of water bodies in Europe met the strictest EU standards for “excellent” bathing quality in 2023. We are talking about as much as 85.4 percent. popular bathing spots in the EU (22,000 such places were examined). Unfortunately, 1.5 percent rated as having poor water quality. Unfortunately, Poland found itself in a disgraceful position in the ranking. It turns out that we have some of the dirtiest swimming areas in Europe.
Condition of bathing water in Europe
As much as 96 percent all officially identified bathing waters in the EU met minimum quality standards in 2023, and only 1.5% were rated as “bad”. This is great news for people who vacation in this type of places. It seems that in Europe they can do this without any worries.
An assessment carried out by the European Environment Agency (EEA) in cooperation with the European Commission shows where swimmers can find safe places to swim in Europe this summer. It focuses specifically on bathing safety by monitoring bacteria that can cause serious illness in humans, rather than overall water quality.
The cleanest waters in this respect are found in swimming areas in Greece, Croatia, Cyprus and Austria. Interestingly, in Belgium, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Austria, Romania and Malta, all such water bodies officially met at least minimum quality standards last year.
The quality of swimming in coastal waters is generally better compared to inland waters. In 2023, 89 percent classified coastal bathing areas were of excellent quality compared to almost 79%. waters in inland bathing areas.
Since the adoption of the Bathing Water Directive in 2006, the proportion of poor quality bathing water has fallen over the last decade and has remained stable since 2015. However, health risks from swimming in such places remain a concern.
The dirtiest water in Europe. Poland is in a disgraceful place
Unfortunately, there is also the other side of this coin. Poland was rated in the ranking as the country with the dirtiest bathing water in the European Union. On the scale of Europe, it was “beaten” only by Albania (which, together with Switzerland, was rated in the ranking as a country outside the EU).
In Poland, only 55 percent bathing areas meet the criteria of very good water quality, and in Albania only 41 percent
Although most bathing waters in Europe are in excellent condition from a bacteriological point of view, surface and groundwater pollution remains significant and is likely to be worsened by a changing climate. Improving the water resilience of people and the environment will be crucial in the coming years.
