MANLY SWIM SITES RECEIVE ANNUAL REPORT CARD
The report card for the water quality of popular Manly swim spots has been revealed in the annual State of the Beaches report.
Seven monitored swim sites in the Manly Electorate scored Very Good or Good.
The State of the Beaches report has five categories of water quality rating: Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor or Very Poor.
Member for Manly and Minister for Environment James Griffin said residents should check the Beachwatch forecast before swimming.
“Manly residents love to swim and enjoy their swim sites,” Mr Griffin said.
“Swimmers and surfers should remember to take care after rainfall, which is the major driver of pollution to recreational waters.”
“The official advice is to avoid swimming at ocean beaches for at least one day, and up to three days at estuarine swimming sites after heavy rain.”
Along the NSW coast, 80 per cent of the 214 monitored swim sites were graded as good or very good.
A good or very good grade indicates swimmers could expect excellent water quality and suitable conditions for swimming almost all of the time.
The State of the Beaches report found that this year’s flood waters affected sites well beyond the immediate vicinity of flooded areas, with some sites on the North Coast, Central Coast, and in Sydney unsuitable for swimming for up to four weeks.
Member for Manly and Minister for Environment James Griffin said the impact of wet weather on water quality highlighted the importance of the early morning Beachwatch daily pollution forecasts for swimmers and surfers.
“Despite the wettest summer in a decade, and Sydney’s wettest year on record, there’s been only a slight decline on last year’s results,” Mr Griffin said.
“In 2021–22, 172 (80 per cent) of the 214 swimming sites in NSW were graded as good or very good, indicating they were suitable for swimming most of the time.
“More than 85 per cent of people in NSW live within 50 kilometres of the coast, and heading to a local swimming spot is a way of life for many of us, which is why being able to monitor water quality is so important for the NSW community.”
“We’ve been running the Beachwatch monitoring program since 1989, and we know how important it is for providing confidence to the people of NSW, which is why we announced in the NSW Budget that we’re expanding the Beachwatch Partnership program with $18.5 million over 10 years.”
The 2021-22 State of the Beaches report can be viewed at https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/water/beaches/reporting-beach-water-quality/state-of-the-beaches
Daily Beachwatch pollution forecasts and weekly star ratings for beaches across NSW can be found at www.environment.nsw.gov.au/beachwatch and on Twitter and Facebook.