Cyprus tops EU swimming water quality rankings with 99.2% excellent rating
Source: in-cyprus.com
Cyprus achieved the best performance in the EU for swimming water quality, with 99.2% of its waters rated as “excellent” quality, according to the European Environment Agency’s annual report published on Wednesday.
Across the European Union, 96% of swimming waters met required quality standards in 2024, whilst 85% were assessed as “excellent” quality. Waters rated as “sufficient” quality were limited to 1.5%, with the overall picture remaining stable compared to the previous year.
EU Environment Commissioner Jessica Roswell stated that “Europeans can swim with complete safety at the vast majority of EU swimming sites.”
This year’s assessment covered more than 22,000 swimming sites in EU member states, as well as Albania and Switzerland. Water quality was classified into four categories – “excellent,” “good,” “sufficient” and “poor” – based on microbiological analyses for pollutants originating mainly from sewage and agricultural activities.
Following Cyprus were Bulgaria (97.9%), Greece (97%), Austria (95.8%) and Croatia (95.2%).
Albania ranked lowest with only 16% of sites characterised as “excellent,” recording a 25-point drop compared to 2023. Poland showed slight improvement, reaching 58.1%.
Coastal waters generally presented better quality than rivers and lakes due to increased renewal and natural self-cleaning capacity. Inland water resources are more strongly affected by surface runoff, heavy rainfall or drought.
In 2023, 321 swimming sites in the EU were characterised as “poor” quality, with 67 of these improving compared to 2022.
Where “poor” quality is identified, national authorities are required to temporarily prohibit swimming, take measures to limit pollution and protect public health.
(information from amna.gr)
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