Probe into how South Bay became polluted
tests taken between May and September came back as “excellent”, a number of failures at other times pushed the overall classification for the year into the “poor” category.
Cllr Mike Cockerill, Scarborough Council’s Cabinet member for harbours, coast and flood protection, said the latest results “did not come as a surprise”.
He added: “The recently published bathing water quality results for Scarborough South Bay and Filey have, understandably, been a cause of concern for elected members, officers and other interested parties.
“However, I must emphasise that this work is not new and is not in direct response to the results published on November 7.
“During the last couple of years there have been nearly 70 actions instigated in regard to identifying and controlling potential sources of pollution along our coastline.
“Although the Environment Agency is responsible for monitoring water quality, there are other organisations working closely with them, as part of the Yorkshire Bathing Water Partnership, in efforts to improve the current situation.”
He added: “There are a considerable number of potential sources of pollution in and around South Bay that may be contributory factors, either individually or collectively.
“However, comprehensive investigations carried out to date have not yet revealed the critical cause, so at this moment in time we do not know exactly why the bathing water has failed.”
Due to the poor result, the council now faces the possibility of having to put up warn- ing signs on the beaches next summer informing visitors about the low quality of the water.
Local fishermen are also putting pressure on the council to sort out the issue, which they say has been going on for years. Bob Roberts, spokesman for Scarborough Fishermen’s Society, said: “Since 2003 and the inception of the Blue Flag to indicate acceptable bathing water quality, North Bay has been awarded the Blue Flag.
“Since 2003 the South Bay has failed and in fact this year South Bay has now been downgraded to ‘poor’ which means signs will have to be displayed advising bathers of the risks to their health.
“What on Earth is going on?”
Cllr Cockerill explained that the latest investigation under way is a major survey, which involves DNA profiling along the stretch of coastline from Jackson’s Bay to Cayton Bay. The results of the survey are expected by March next year. He said: “We hope that the results will provide vital information to guide the partnership in any further steps that might be required.
“There is obviously a lot of work to do to improve Scarborough South Bay’s bathing water quality but I can assure you that as part of the Yorkshire Bathing Water Partnership, the council remains very much committed to the cause.”
On the subject of the warning signs, a spokesperson from Scarborough Council said: “The Revised Bathing Water Directive legislation is based on the official bathing season of May 1 to September 30 and therefore it requires us to update the signage with this November’s result in time for May 1, 2017.”