6.1.b Percentage of inland and coastal bathing waters with excellent water quality
Sustainable Development Goal
Goal 6. Clear water and sanitation
Priority
Increase in disposable water resources, improvement of its ecological state and chemical quality
Definition
The proportion of inland and coastal bathing waters classified as having excellent water quality in relation to the total number of inland and coastal bathing waters.
Unit
percent [%]
Available dimensions
total
Methodological explanations
The indicator enables the monitoring of long-term changes in the quality of bathing waters and does not refer to the current water quality at bathing sites.
The numerator includes all inland and coastal bathing waters classified as having excellent water quality, while the denominator includes all inland and coastal bathing waters operating during the reference bathing season.
The data required for the calculation of the indicator are collected by Member States of the European Union (EU) in accordance with Directive 2006/7/EC. The European Environment Agency is responsible for the compilation and dissemination of the data.
In Poland, the classification of bathing water quality is carried out annually by the authorities of the State Sanitary Inspection following the bathing season, on the basis of the results of microbiological parameter testing (Escherichia coli and enterococci) conducted in accordance with monitoring schedules covering the previous four years.
Based on the assessment of bathing water quality over a four-year period, the following water quality classes are distinguished: 4 Excellent – highest water quality; 3 Good – generally good water quality; 2 Sufficient – water meets the minimum quality standard; 1 Poor – water does not meet the minimum quality standard; 0 Not classified – classification is not possible due to the absence of a complete set of water quality data.
The most common reasons for the absence of a water quality classification (“Not classified”) concern bathing waters that are: a) newly identified, for which data are still being collected; b) not designated by the gmina council during a given bathing season (within the four-year assessment period), resulting in interruptions in the microbiological monitoring required for the classification of bathing water quality.
A “not classified” status does not automatically imply that the bathing water fails to meet the required standards. It only indicates that the period required to assign the bathing water to one of the four available quality classes has not yet elapsed.
