An urgent 'do not swim' warning has been issued at a UK beach for an entire year after dangerous levels of bacteria were found in the water. Faecal matter has been uncovered at St Mary's Bay on Romney Marsh in Kent by the Environment Agency and swimmers are now being told to stay away throughout 2023.
The public body is investigating what led to the bacterial spike but believe the issue is likely down to pollution, the Mirror reports. An Environment Agency spokesman said: "[We] will continue to work with its partners to fully investigate the reasons for the decline in bathing water quality at St Mary's Bay.
"All agencies involved are working to identify, remove and reduce the sources of the pollution to ensure that the status of this bathing water improves. As part of our investigations, we are monitoring several potential sources of pollution including septic tanks, misconnections and potential sources of diffuse pollution."
They also confirmed water samples will be taken from the bay throughout the summer months and if they improve, the beach could potentially re-open if deemed safe. However, they have issued a firm warning that if bacteria levels do not meet minimum standards they will continue to warn the public not to bathe at this location.
Earlier this year, it was revealed rivers and canals across large areas of the UK have seen raw sewage flooding into the waters. Over 59 drains were on red alert and currently forcing untreated excrement into open water.
A further 60 drains were issued amber warnings, after being discharged in the last 48 hours, the map reveals. The concerning figures are only for the area served by Thames Water which covers everywhere from Banbury and Hertfordshire in the north of its region, to Dorking and Crawley in the south and as far east as Swindon and Cirencester, as well as the capital.
It led to worries that the picture could be far worse across the entire country.
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