Britain's top ten dirtiest beaches

Blackpool tower and beach — Blackpool beach. Image: Shutterstock

A study has revealed the ten ‘dirtiest’ beaches across the UK with sites in Bradford, Blackpool and North Somerset topping the chart.

By Charlotte Hall

After a summer of ‘no swim’ warnings at some of the UK’s most popular beaches, a study has now revealed the top ten swimming affected by pollution from sewage leaks.

Wharfe at Cromwheel, Ilkley, Blackpool North and Weston Main scored the lowest water cleanliness grades in a study by the rubbish removal company Clear It Waste.

Clear it Waste established scores for more than 400 beaches across the country, using factors such as recent swim bans and the presence of the intestinal bacteria Enterococcus faecalis and Escherichia coli (e. coli) in ocean water. Both bacteria are found in raw sewage and can cause symptoms ranging from fevers to nausea and vomiting when accidentally digested while swimming.

Wharfe at Cromwheel near Bradford is a shingle swimming beach on the River Ilkley. It received the lowest water cleanliness score of 3.5 out of 10, with the highest level of e faecalis and e coli of any UK beach included in the study. The region is covered by Yorkshire Water Services Limited, responsible for more than 54,000 sewage overflows last year. The company did not reply to a request for comment.

Blackpool North and Weston Main came in second and third, each scoring just under five in the cleanliness scale. Blackpool North was subject to a swim ban in June, along with five other beaches in Blackpool.

United Utilities discharged sewage into the sea during a thunderstorm on June 12 and tests conducted by campaign group Surfers Against Sewage found traces of e coli in the water a few days later, prompting health warnings.

Weston Main beach, third on the dirtiest beach list. Image: Shutterstock

Blackpool attracts over 18 million visitors a year, for trips to the beach and surfing. Yet all of the area’s beaches were recently classified with a 10/10 pollution risk by DEFRA.

The study adds to a mounting body of data condemning private water companies, who have been held responsible for releasing excessive amounts of untreated sewage into British waterways. Firms including United Utilities, Thames Water, and Southern Water are now under pressure to invest in outdated infrastructure, which was not built to handle the current volume of wastewater.

DEFRA have requested to see action plans and raised fines on malpractice. Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey said earlier this year: ‘I am crystal clear that [sewage entering our rivers] is totally unacceptable. ‘I am now demanding every company to come back to me with a clear plan for what they are doing on every storm overflow, prioritising those near sites where people swim and our most precious habitats.’

As well as causing serious health hazards and holiday disappointments, sewage in the oceans can cause major imbalances in aquatic ecosystems.

The sudden nutrient overload can cause eutrophication, where oxygen is depleted, killing marine flora and fauna and interrupting ecological balance.

The presence of sewage can also stimulate the growth of harmful algal blooms that produce substances poisonous to animals.

The top ten ‘dirtiest’ beaches are: