THE Environment Protection Authority has ranked Port Phillip Bay beaches and Yarra River locations over summer and nine beaches are named in equal first place for the best recreational water quality.
Hampton, Seaford, Portsea, Canadian Bay, Sandringham, Elwood, Rosebud, Santa Casa and Black Rock all offered the best recreational water quality, while Half Moon Bay, Portarlington, Carrum and South Melbourne beaches equalled 10th spot.
EPA Group Manager of Applied Sciences Anthony Boxshall said each of Port Phillip Bay’s 36 beaches was ranked according to EPA and Melbourne Water’s weekly water quality monitoring data from 1 November 2015 until 10 April this year.
“Beach Report and Yarra Watch provide water quality information to the public so they can make informed decisions about swimming in Port Phillip Bay or at certain areas along the Yarra River,” Dr Boxshall said.
“Port Phillip Bay water quality beach forecasts were ‘Good’ 75 per cent of the time, ‘Fair’ for 19 per cent and ‘Poor’ for 6 per cent of the time. Our beaches are great places to visit and the 2015-16 summer was particularly good for swimming conditions.
“On the whole, the 36 beaches in Port Phillip Bay and four swimming locations along the Yarra River had a great summer for water quality; however several heavy downpours of rain did at times affect water quality at some sites, particularly those with stormwater outlets.
“EPA advises the community to avoid swimming near stormwater or river outlets 24–48 hours after rain or in areas where water is discoloured, or debris, oil and scum is visible.”
Dr Boxshall said most of the bay’s beaches met EPA’s water quality objectives for the whole of summer and were safe to swim in during fine weather, with 97 per cent of beaches meeting EPA objectives for swimming – up from 94 per cent for the same period last year and 53 per cent in 2011–12.
In 2015–16, the length of the season was increased in response to warmer temperatures forecast for November, with the season starting on 1 November and running through until the end of school holidays on 10 April.
EPA Beach Report and Yarra Watch will begin again in December.
End of season highlight reports with more in-depth summary of recreational water quality this summer can be found at yarraandbay.vic.gov.au
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 27 April 2016