Letting science do the talking on water quality
What impacts bathing water quality and how can we work together to improve our rivers and seas? Independent scientists answer your burning questions.
Bathing water quality webinar
For the second year running we hosted a special webinar on the science behind bathing water quality.
This near 90-minute seminar brought together independent academic researchers and Environment Agency experts to explain what drives bathing‑water contamination, how it’s measured, and what practical actions reduce risk.
Presentations included international case studies, diagnostic methods, and regulatory context in England.
Speakers
- Dr Cathy Pond, of University of Surrey — a World Health Organisation (WHO) collaborator and lead on a South Coast sources project
- Julie Kinzelman, public‑health laboratory director in the USA — sharing Great Lakes case studies on source investigation and interventions
- Andy Rogers, of Environment Agency — providing national water‑quality planning and regulatory context
- Ian Dunhill, of Environment Agency — offering operational perspective on monitoring, indicators and interventions.
Core themes
- Why bathing‑water quality is shaped by multiple, interacting sources: sewage and storm overflows, agricultural runoff, wildlife, illegal connections, sediment and algal mats
- The limits of routine microbiological sampling (E. coli, enterococci): retrospective lab lag and hourly variability
- How a systems approach (sanitary surveys, observational data, targeted molecular tests, community profiling) pinpoints dominant sources and measures intervention effectiveness
- Practical interventions that work: stormwater retrofit (constructed wetlands), fixing illegal connections, bird management and targeted beach maintenance
- The role of collaboration across agencies, water companies, local authorities, researchers and citizen scientists.
Why does it matter?
Climate change and increasing recreational use mean bathing‑water risks are evolving. This seminar emphasises proactive, site‑specific risk management that protects public health while supporting beach access and local economies.