Four bathing spots in Cork, Dublin and Galway have been ruled unsafe for swimming due to pollution by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
However, a new report by the EPA found the quality of bathing waters around Ireland remains good, with 97 per cent of designated swimming areas meeting the EU mandatory standards.
According to the EPA, Ireland's recent good track record regarding minimum cleanliness of bathing water here still stands, but sea water in Clifden and Na Forbacha in Co Galway, Youghal in Co Cork and Balbriggan in north Dublin failed to pass the basic European assessment last year.
The public health risk attached to these areas was due mainly to the presence of traces of human/animal waste material in the water.
The EPA study,
The Quality of Bathing Water in Ireland 2007, also showed that while compliance with the mandatory EU requirements remained the same as in 2006, there was a decrease in the number of bathing areas that adhered to the stricter EU guide values.