Dún Laoghaire Baths ‘safe’ for swimming, says council, regardless of EPA warning – The Irish Occasions

Council officers in Dún Laoghaire are in dispute with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over the classification of native bathing waters as unfit for swimming.

The EPA this week ranked the waters at Dún Laoghaire Baths as being of “poor” high quality, saying bathing restrictions would apply this summer time season.

It got here as an enormous disappointment after substantial funding in a brand new jetty and entry steps allowed the favored swimming spot to be designated an official bathing space for the primary time final 12 months.

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has subsequently issued a public assertion saying the washing waters have been “currently rated as excellent and the location is safe for swimming”.

However, the EPA has doubled down on its evaluation, saying the related classification is “poor” which suggests, it stated: “The water is not safe for swimming, as the site is vulnerable to pollution.”

The council stated it was erecting an “advisory notice” on the baths to reference the EPA evaluation, however harassed this was not a prohibition discover.

The EPA stated it was a matter for an area authority along with the well being authorities to determine whether or not an advisory discover or a prohibition discover was extra acceptable.

Despite committing to erecting the advisory discover, the council stated its recommendation to bathers as of Friday was “to be reassured that current conditions indicate the water is safe for swimming”.

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The dispute centres on the timing of the water testing. Under the washing rules, testing in designated bathing areas is carried out from June 1st to September fifteenth – the official bathing season – and the outcomes dictate the rating for the season the next 12 months.

Dún Laoghaire had two air pollution incidents final summer time, ensuing within the waters failing the standard take a look at and being left with a poor rating for this season.

“The EPA issued a ‘poor’ bathing water classification for Dún Laoghaire Baths for the 2026 season, based solely on 2025 results,” the council stated in a press release.

“However, when assessed over the full 2023–2025 period, water quality meets ‘good’ standards, with 91 per cent of samples rated ‘excellent’.

“Two isolated incidents in July 2025 led to elevated [pollution] readings but do not reflect the overall good water quality at the site.”

The EPA stated, nevertheless, the testing and classification system was set out in EU and nationwide rules, was the identical one utilized in all EU member states and was “robust”.

“The samples analysed by Dún Laoghaire Rathdown in 2023 and 2024 were not collected as per the Bathing Water Regulations, no sample calendar was scheduled and submitted to the EPA, and the EPA had no oversight of the sample collection and analysis,” it stated in a press release.

“These samples are inadmissible to the EU. The EPA has assessed Dún Laoghaire Baths in the same way as the other 153 bathing sites in Ireland, and all other identified bathing waters across the EU.

“As Dún Laoghaire Baths received a ‘poor’ classification in 2025, it must display a bathing restriction for the 2026 season.”

The EPA stated an advisory discover on the web site ought to point out that the water could pose a well being danger “and that the advice is not to swim”.

While councils shouldn’t have to check water high quality outdoors of the official bathing season, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has been taking samples within the low season.

It stated all samples besides one taken up to now in 2026 had been “excellent” and all outcomes have been obtainable to the general public on the council web site and on social media.

Swimmers also can rise up up to now info, the place it’s obtainable on the beaches.ie web site.