Beach
WhiteBay Beach Whitegate Midleton
Not classified
No official classification has been published for this site yet.
No samples yet this season
Latest sample
E. coli
No in-season data
No samples published yet this season.
Excellent here is 250 or below, Good up to 500 · coastal limits
What is E. coli?
A bacterium that lives in the gut of people and animals, so finding it in water means sewage or livestock run-off has reached it. Most strains will not hurt you; they are counted because whatever else came in with them might.
The limits above are percentiles across a whole season's samples, not an average, so a single high reading does not by itself change the site's rating.
Intestinal enterococci
No in-season data
No samples published yet this season.
Excellent here is 100 or below, Good up to 200 · coastal limits
What is Intestinal enterococci?
The other bacterium the regulations require, and the more telling one at the coast: it survives in salt water far longer than E. coli, so it still shows contamination that E. coli alone would miss.
The limits above are percentiles across a whole season's samples, not an average, so a single high reading does not by itself change the site's rating.
Why this matters if you are swimming
You are most likely to get ill from swallowing the water, and most likely to notice it as a stomach upset. Ear, eye, chest and skin infections are the other common outcomes. Open cuts and dunking your head both raise the odds.
The risk is worst in the day or two after heavy rain, when storm overflows discharge and run-off washes off fields — often at sites that rate Excellent the rest of the season.
These counts come from one sample, taken by hand on the date shown and analysed in a lab. They describe the water on that day, not the water in front of you now.
Pollution risk
No pollution forecast
The EPA publishes sample results rather than a daily pollution forecast.
How does this work?
After heavy rain, storm drains and sewage overflows can temporarily contaminate the water. Sampled through the bathing season, with bathing restrictions published as they arise. Where a daily forecast exists it predicts risk a day ahead and expires after that.
EPA Ireland · WhiteBay Beach Whitegate Midleton · 0 m away
Published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 · © Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland)
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Frequently asked questions
Where does the water quality data come from?
From the official agency for the country the spot is in: the Environment Agency in England, Natural Resources Wales, SEPA in Scotland, DAERA in Northern Ireland, the EPA in Ireland, and the European Environment Agency elsewhere. All of them test for E. coli and intestinal enterococci under the same Bathing Water Directive standard.
How often is water quality updated?
Designated bathing waters are sampled roughly weekly through the bathing season, and the annual classification is recalculated once a year from the previous four seasons. Some agencies also publish a daily pollution forecast; where one exists it is shown alongside the samples.
What do the classifications mean?
Excellent and Good are the top classifications, based on measured bacteria levels. Sufficient meets the minimum standard. Poor means the water failed it. The classification covers the last four seasons, so it describes a site in general rather than the water today — always check conditions yourself before swimming.
Why do some beaches have pollution warnings?
Heavy rainfall can cause sewage overflows and wash contaminants off the land. Where an agency models that risk it issues a short-term warning, and some also publish bathing restrictions when an incident occurs.
Why does this spot show more than one monitoring site?
Some spots sit near several official sites — two adjacent designated beaches, for instance. Each is listed with how far it is from the spot, nearest first.