Sussex beaches have recorded a dramatic slump in the number achieving Blue Flag status.
West Wittering and Littlehampton Coastguard beaches will fly the prestigious flag again thissummer, but Bognor Regis East, Brighton’s West Street andHove Lawns beaches,which were all recognised last year, have not made the cut under stricter EU rules.
The Blue Flag Awards recognise high quality beaches worldwide in terms of environmental education and information, water quality, environmental management, safety and services.
The new EU standards require beaches to obtain “excellent” water quality over four years. Due to last year’s wet weather, the south coast water quality was compromised and beaches have been forced to relinquish its status.
Arun District Council’s cabinet member for environmental services with responsibility for tourism, Coun Paul Dendle, said: “Despite Bognor Regis beach consistently meeting the top water quality standards required to achieve Blue Flag status over the last few years, this was lost last summer due to unprecedented rainfall.
“The council was unable to apply for the Blue Flag Award for Bognor Regis for 2013 because the standards did not meet the raised criteria, but this by no means indicates that water quality off the coast of Bognor Regis has diminished.”
National figures are also down, with only 55 beaches in England honoured compared to last year’s 79.
It comes as a blow to Southern Water, which last month released a 25-year target for bringing all the county’s beaches up to Blue Flag status.
A spokeswoman said: “We have invested billions of pounds in improving the quality of the bathing water along the south-east coastline and in 2012 all beaches in our region met strict European standards for bathing water quality. The majority also achieved the 20 times tighter guideline standard.”
Despite losing its Blue Flag accreditation, the Bognor beach did receive the less prestigious Seaside Award, along with Littlehampton Coastguard, Marina, St Leonards and Pelham Beach in Hastings. This award, by Keep Britain Tidy, acknowledges beaches in England that achieve high standards of beach management
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