Thirteen of Guernsey's beaches are tested every year against standards conforming to the EU Bathing Water Quality Directive 2006. The Directive sets standards for Escherichia coli and Intestinal enterococci. Samples are collected by Environmental Health and tested by the States' Analyst. Bathing water classification of beaches from 2017 onwards will be determined on a rolling 95th percentile record of the previous four seasons' results to determine if a beach is assessed as 'excellent', 'good', 'sufficient', or 'poor' overall.

Bathing Water Quality Results

The bathing season is between the 1st May and the 30th September. Bathing water quality testing is undertaken at 13 bays throughout the bathing season in line with the EU Bathing Water Quality Directive 2006. The beach locations have been chosen to provide a representative sample of the island's coast and historically the beaches tested have been considered the most important for swimming.  

It is important to note that bathing water samples only produce a snapshot of conditions and water quality conditions can change even over the course of a day.  Water quality is most often adversely affected by heavy rainfall as surface water run-off from fields and roads on higher ground enters streams and storm drains which run on to beaches.  This run off may be affected by faecal bacteria from grazing animals, dogs and birds.  

The table below will be updated with the most recent bathing water quality results.

Downloads

Share this page