Lower Largo and Barassie beaches given official bathing status

Two Scottish beaches which failed to meet basic European standards for water quality for more than 10 years, have been declared official bathing waters.

Lower Largo in Fife and Barassie in Ayr were given the status by Environment Minister Mairi McAllan.

The beaches had been badly polluted by sewage and found to endanger the health of paddlers, swimmers and surfers.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) said Scottish waters were "at their best on record".

Lower Largo beach, where people can swim naked, was submitted for consideration by Largo Area Community Council with support from Fife Council, while Barassie was submitted by Friends of Troon beaches with the backing of South Ayrshire Council.

In previous years Sepa found that during months with heavier rainfall bacteria levels at the sites were above the recommended safety threshold.

Heavy rainfall flooded sewers, causing them to overflow, and washed animal faeces from the land into the sea.

Sepa samples bathing waters each summer to ensure that the concentration levels of two faecal bacteria, E Coli and intestinal enterococci, do not breach European standards for water quality.

In 2005, the beaches made The Times' 'Bad beaches list: in full' in which the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) warned that people were at risk of contracting stomach bugs from sewage at these beaches.

The beaches continued to fail water quality standards up until 2020. Sepa could not collect enough samples as the official bathing season was shortened by six weeks because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ms McAllan made the decision to give the beaches bathing water status after they successfully met the standards this year - a large number of bathers use the water, there was community support for designation as well as support from the local authority and willingness to accept beach management duties.

The minister said: "The new Bathing Waters status for Barassie Beach and Lower Largo is great news for the local communities, and will support the large number of residents and tourists who enjoy taking a dip at these seaside locations.

Nathan Critchlow-Watton, Sepa's interim head of water and planning, added: "Scotland's natural environment is world renowned. Our waters are at their best status on record and the best in the UK, including 99% of bathing waters meeting strict environmental standards in 2021.

"With Lower Largo and Barassie designated for the 2022 season, Scotland now has more bathing waters than any previous year. This is good news for the communities, businesses and visitors that enjoy our coastlines.

"Sepa's specialist teams will take samples at all our bathing waters throughout the season, providing water quality information for all those who wish to visit."