Dún Laoghaire Council Disputes EPA «Poor» Bathing Water Rating for 2026 Season
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council disputes the EPA's «poor» bathing water classification for Dún Laoghaire Baths for the 2026 season. The council asserts the water is safe, attributing the rating to two 2025 pollution incidents, while the EPA upholds its assessment based on EU regulations and inadmissible council samples from previous years.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is in dispute with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over the classification of Dún Laoghaire Baths' bathing waters as «poor» for the 2026 season. This designation means bathing restrictions will apply, despite significant investment in a new jetty and access steps that led to the spot being designated an official bathing area last year.
The council maintains the waters are currently «excellent» and safe for swimming, citing 91 per cent of samples rated «excellent» over the 2023–2025 period, with overall quality meeting «good» standards. They attribute the «poor» 2026 classification solely to two isolated pollution incidents in July 2025, which caused elevated readings. The council is erecting an «advisory notice» but stresses it is not a prohibition, advising bathers that current conditions indicate the water is safe.
The EPA, however, stands by its assessment, stating the «poor» classification means the water is not safe due to vulnerability to pollution. The agency explains that under EU and national regulations, the 2026 classification is based on 2025 results. The EPA also stated that samples collected by Dún Laoghaire Rathdown in 2023 and 2024 were not compliant with Bathing Water Regulations, lacked a scheduled sample calendar, and had no EPA oversight, rendering them inadmissible to the EU. Therefore, Dún Laoghaire Baths must display a bathing restriction for the 2026 season.