Barry Ward (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber to deal with this issue. It has been ongoing for some time and I have raised it in the House on a number of occasions. A group in my area called SOS Dublin Bay, made up primarily of sea swimmers, is concerned about the quality of water in Dublin Bay and has raised this issue with me on a number of occasions. The group has written to the offices of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, and has had meetings. We are coming up on the anniversary of a meeting on 23 June last year on this issue.

The group's concern relates to this country's compliance with the EU bathing water directive and its Irish counterpart transposed into Irish legislation, the 2008 bathing water quality regulations. It is concerned that we are not doing enough to comply with the directive or, on a very simple level, to provide peace of mind to people who are swimming in the waters around Ireland and in the rivers and lakes within Ireland. SOS Dublin Bay and I are specifically concerned with the quality of bathing water in Dublin Bay.

The European directive dates back to the 1970s. The original one was in 1976 and it was updated in 2006. It has made considerable progress throughout the European Union in terms of achieving much higher bathing water quality in rivers, lakes and coastal areas. That is to be commended. We have also made progress in that regard in Ireland but not enough. The reality is that sea, river and lake swimming has become a much bigger exercise now than it was even a few years ago. During the pandemic and the restrictions, many people availed of an amenity on their doorstep and used it in a very healthy way by swimming in the sea, lakes or rivers. That is also to be commended. It is a very good thing that people swim in the sea. It does one good, as well as everything else. However, people should be entitled to enjoy it with peace of mind.

The directive that exists since 2006 requires samplings to be conducted at least four times per season and no more than one month apart. It puts the sample results, in the context of particular bacteria, into four categories; poor, sufficient, good and excellent. I am happy to say that recent tests in Dublin Bay have all been excellent and that is to be welcomed.

The difficulty is in a number of areas. The sample results are not always excellent. It takes time for the result of the sampling to get into the public domain. People may find themselves swimming in water that is poor or insufficient for a long time - days - before they realise it is of poor quality. Difficulty also arises in respect of the regulations passed here in Ireland. Regulation 2 defines the bathing season in any year as the period of 1 June to 15 September in that year. That definition is incredibly restrictive and means we are only required to carry out monitoring under the directive during that short period. That should be changed, especially in light of the fact that people are now using seawater, river water and lake water all year round to swim. People are swimming not just between 1 June and 15 September but today, yesterday, tomorrow, Christmas Day and all through the winter.

People are swimming at the Forty Foot, Seapoint, Hawk Cliff, Blackrock, Sandycove and all the other coastal, river and lake points throughout the country. That is happening but we have prohibited local authorities from expanding the definition of the bathing season to include the whole year. Their obligations are restricted to that much shorter period. We are not in compliance with the directive in that regard and are at risk of facing a complaint to the European Commission regarding our failure to comply with the rules under the directive.

I know this issue has been raised with the Minister and there is a commitment to change it but it has not happened. We are coming up on a year since a meeting that took place between SOS Dublin Bay and the Minister and nothing has happened during that time. It is not a difficult drafting change to make. It would be easy for the Minister to do with the stroke of a pen. When will it happen? Can the Minister of State satisfy me that we are in full compliance with the bathing water directive?

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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I thank the Senator for raising this issue, which I will answer on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I was pleased to see continued improvements in the quality of our bathing waters, especially those that meet or exceed the minimum water quality requirements, in the Bathing Water Quality in Ireland 2020 report published by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA. The EPA reports that 96% of bathing waters met or exceeded the minimum required standard, up from 95% in 2019. I look forward to seeing further improvement in the EPA's 2021 bathing quality report, which is due to be published in May of this year. These continued improvements in bathing water quality are welcome and necessary.

Extensive work is being carried out by each of our local authorities and other stakeholders on continued improvements in our bathing water quality. To protect bathers' health and ensure the public have access to bathing water amenities, it is important that the network of bathing waters is strengthened and enhanced and we continue to see new beaches identified each year.

The European Commission reviews the implementation of the bathing water directive by member states, with the last review undertaken in 2018. This review found that Ireland is fundamentally in line with the provisions of the directive. The Commission recommended that Ireland improve the provision of information on algae and short-term pollution. This has since been put in place. The report concluded that Ireland offers several good practices to demonstrate how the directive can be effectively implemented in practice.

The bathing season under the bathing water regulations is from 1 June to 15 September each year. Recently, some swimming groups have expressed an interest in having a longer bathing season in some areas. In response, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has met with stakeholders and has asked the national bathing water expert group, chaired by officials in his Department, to consider the matter and make recommendations on how best to protect bathers' health outside of the current bathing water season and what additional measures may be necessary.

The expert group has developed a questionnaire for the public and one for local authorities to determine who is bathing during the winter months, where this bathing is occurring and the expectations of winter bathers. This information, to be gathered within the coming two months, will inform the development of guidance for bathers outside of the current bathing water season and assist in informing the expert group if any additional changes, including regulatory changes, are required.

Barry Ward (Fine Gael)
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I recognise that the Minister of State is here on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and may not be in a position to answer some of the questions I have asked. What the Minister of State has been given by the officials as an answer to this question does not advance the issue one iota. The reality is that there has been a commitment to change the regulations in this State with regard to the definition of the bathing water season.I understand there has been a commitment to change the definition of bathing water season in regulations in this State. When will that happen? It has not happened yet and it is a simple change. I welcome the work the expert group is doing. SOS Dublin Bay has had meetings with officials, the HSE, the EPA, public representatives, Dublin Port and the local authorities in Dublin. I do not understand why nothing is happening because it is a really simple change to make. We do not need to carry out a survey to ask if changes need to be made to the regulations; they need to be made. There is already a commitment that they will be made. They do not need to ask who is bathing. It does not matter who is bathing. We know that people are swimming in water and we know that they are entitled to peace of mind when they are swimming.

I would like answers to these simple questions. Are we in compliance with our obligations under European law? Are we looking down the barrel of a complaint to the European Commission? What will we do about it if that happens?

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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As I already mentioned, officials are currently examining the most suitable options to provide for safe bathing water during the winter months and to improve dissemination of information on bathing water quality. We look forward to the recommendations of the expert group in the coming months. The Government is committed to substantial and sustained investment in our water infrastructure which will build on improvements in recent years to deliver enhanced environmental conditions in our rivers, estuaries, lakes and coastal waters.

I take the opportunity to remind members that the draft river basin management plan, which proposes a new level of ambition with over 100 measures outlined to address impacts on water quality, is out for public consultation until the end of this month. I encourage everyone to participate in this process and express their views as this will help to inform and improve the plans, programmes and wider policy developments that impact our waters.

A more comprehensive approach is being taken to hear the views and issues before making decisions in the coming months. I reiterate that a review undertaken by the European Commission found that Ireland is fundamentally in line with the provisions of the relevant directive.