Greek Bathing Water Quality Top Notch, says European Environment Agency

Ammolofoi beach

The European Environment Agency (EEA) announced in its report released on Wednesday, that the waters at beaches across Greece meet excellent bathing water quality standards, meaning they were free from pollutants harmful to human health and the environment.

According to the report which covers bathing water locations across the EU, Albania and Switzerland, Greece is fourth among the five countries where 95 percent or more bathing waters were assessed as being of “excellent” quality: Luxembourg (all 11 reported bathing sites), Cyprus (99 percent of all sites), Malta (99 percent of all sites), Greece (97 percent of all sites), and Austria (95 percent of all sites).

“The excellent quality of European bathing water sites is not by chance. It is the result of hard work by dedicated professionals. It shows the importance of nurturing EU policy that promotes green jobs. This year our European Green Week, May 29-June 2, will celebrate this investment. Water technicians, flood protectors, environmental chemists, waste water managers – all play an essential role in keeping bathing water quality high,” said Karmenu Vella, European Commissioner for the Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

Meanwhile, the highest number of bathing sites with “poor” water quality were found in Italy, France and Spain.

The EEA work is aimed towards aiding Europeans to make better informed choices about the bathing sites they plan to visit this summer. It also shows the effectiveness of our environmental policies. Analyses were conducted on water sampled at more than 21,000 coastal and inland bathing sites across Europe.

The report, issued jointly by the EEA and the European Commission, confirms a positive 40-year trend of increasingly cleaner water at beaches and swimming spots across Europe.