Environmental Health Directorate, Malta

1 week ago

Bathing water quality under the EU Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC) is classified as excellent, good, sufficient, or poor on the basis of a multi‑sample assessment of microbiological results, specifically Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci. The classification in the weekly report is calculated on the sample results obtained from the beginning of the bathing season including the pre-season sampling. The classification applies logarithmic transformations and percentile calculations to these datasets, meaning that the number of weekly samples collected over the assessment period has a substantial influence on the stability and reliability of the final classification. Larger datasets reduce the influence of any single atypical result, whereas limited sampling can allow one divergent value to disproportionately affect the outcome, potentially leading to misclassification.

From a public health perspective, consistent “excellent” and “good” classifications indicate a sustained very low risk of contamination from faecal contamination, reflecting stable environmental conditions and effective pollution control. In contrast, repeated "sufficient" and "poor" classification represents the minimum acceptable level of protection, signalling that the water meets health‑based standards.

The Environmental Health Directorate monitors all official bathing water sites, 87 in total, once a week. It also monitors pet friendly beaches every 4 weeks. Harbours and marinas are not monitored, and it is advised not to swim in these areas.

For more detailed information one can access the following link to our Bathing Water Portal mfh-mt.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/31f48638f89c4d60bd6143818a46a2c7 and the link to our website specific to the unit that carries out regulatory obligations for bathing water quality environmentalhealth.gov.mt/en/ehs/wrau/water-regulatory-and-auditing-unit/

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