Office of Public Sector Information
3. The surface waters specified in Schedule 1 are bathing waters for the purposes of these Regulations.
4. For the purposes of these Regulations, the bathing season begins on the 1st June and ends at the end of the day on 15th September in each year.
5.—(1) The Department shall in the exercise of its relevant functions—
(a) ensure that by the end of the bathing season in 2015, all bathing waters are classified under regulation 12 as at least “sufficient”;
(b) take such realistic and proportionate measures as it considers appropriate in order to increase the number of bathing waters classified under regulation 12 as “good” or “excellent”; and
(c) otherwise ensure compliance with the requirements of the Bathing Water Directive.
(2) In this regulation “relevant functions” means functions under these Regulations and so far as relevant the enactments specified in Schedule 2 to the Water Framework Regulations.
(3) In the Water Framework Regulations, in Schedule 2 (relevant functions), in Part 2, after paragraph 26 insert—
“27. The Quality of Bathing Water Regulations (Northern Ireland)2008.”.
(4) The Department shall promptly provide a bathing water operator with such information as the Department considers the operator requires for the purpose of the operator’s functions under these Regulations.
6.—(1) The Department shall—
(a) encourage public participation in the exercise of its functions under these Regulations; and
(b) ensure that the public has an opportunity—
(i) to find out how to participate; and
(ii) to submit comments or complaints.
(2) The Department shall take due account of any information it has obtained from the public when exercising its functions under these Regulations.
7.—(1) The Department shall establish and keep under review a bathing water profile for every bathing water in accordance with Schedule 2.
(2) The Department may combine the bathing water profiles of contiguous bathing waters.
(3) When complying with paragraph (1), the Department shall take into account the data which it has obtained or analysed under—
(a) The Quality of Bathing Water Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993(7); and
(b) The Water Framework Regulations.
8.—(1) The Department shall monitor and carry out investigations at bathing waters in accordance with this regulation.
(2) Monitoring for—
(a) Intestinal enterococci and Escherichia coli shall be in accordance with Part 1 of Schedule 3;
(b) cyanobacteria shall be in accordance with Part 2 of Schedule 3;
(c) other pollution, which takes the form of tarry residues, glass, plastic, rubber or any other waste, shall be carried out in accordance with Part 4 of Schedule 3.
(3) Investigation of macro-algae and marine phytoplankton proliferation shall be carried out in accordance with Part 3 of Schedule 3.
(4) The bathing water operator shall also monitor in accordance with Part 4 of Schedule 3.
9.—(1) Every bathing water operator shall ensure that the following information about its bathing water is available during the bathing season in an easily accessible place in the vicinity of the bathing water—
(a) the bathing water’s current classification pursuant to regulation 12;
(b) whether any advice against bathing has been introduced there;
(c) a general description of the bathing water, in non-technical language, based on its bathing water profile;
(d) where its bathing water profile indicates that the bathing water is likely to be affected by incidents of short-term pollution—
(i) a statement to that effect;
(ii) an indication of the number of days for which advice against bathing was introduced there during the immediately preceding bathing season because of short-term pollution;
(iii) a warning whenever short-term pollution is predicted or present;
(e) information on the nature and expected duration of abnormal situations there; and
(f) an indication of the sources of more complete information published in accordance with regulation 10.
(2) Paragraph (3)(a) and (b) of regulation 10 shall apply to information provided under this regulation as it applies to information provided under that regulation.
10.—(1) The Department shall publish on its website the information specified in regulation 9(1) together with the following additional information, namely—
(a) a list of all bathing waters;
(b) before the start of every bathing season, the classification in accordance with regulation 12 of every bathing water for the preceding three years;
(c) the bathing water profile of every bathing water;
(d) as soon as possible after completion of the analyses under Schedule 3, the results of the monitoring carried out in accordance with regulation 8 since the beginning of the current bathing season;
(e) where its bathing water profile indicates that the bathing water is likely to be affected by incidents of short-term pollution—
(i) the conditions likely to lead to short-term pollution there;
(ii) the likelihood of short-term pollution there and its likely duration;
(iii) the causes of short-term pollution; and
(iv) the relevant procedures for short-term pollution; and
(f) where a bathing water is classified as “poor” under regulation 12—
(i) the causes of pollution there; and
(ii) the management measures being taken there under regulation 14.
(2) The Department shall—
(a) prepare a general description of every bathing water for use under regulation 9(1)(c); and
(b) make the information available to all bathing water operators.
(3) Information under this regulation shall—
(a) wherever possible, be provided using a geographic information system;
(b) be presented in a clear and coherent manner; and
(c) be in such languages, in addition to English, as are appropriate having regard to the location of the bathing water and the ease of public understanding.
The Quality of Bathing Water Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008