Irish bathing waters achieved a high standard in the 2000 season with over 98 per cent of swimming areas complying with EU minimum standards.
The results from the latest Environmental Protection Agency report came from monitoring 130 seawater and inland bathing areas around the State.
The EPA report found:
- 128 of the 130 bathing areas (98.5 per cent) complied with the minimum mandatory standards laid down by EU legislation;
- 119 of the areas (91.5 per cent) also complied with the much stricter guideline values specified by the EU. This is a slight improvement over the 1999 figure (89 per cent);
Two sites failed to meet the minimum mandatory EU standards - Clifden in Co Galway and Ardmore in Co Waterford.
The agency's senior scientific adviser Dr Mícheál Lehane said while the organisation was satisfied with overall compliance there was disappointment to see Ardmore fail to meet the standards for the second year running.
He added: "We would like to see local authorities attaining similar compliance levels within the recommended guideline standards. Within a European context Ireland's bathing water compares very favorably and is consistently near the top of the EU bathing water quality league".
All designated bathing sites must be sampled every two weeks between mid-May and the end of August.
Responsibility for bathing water quality lies with the local authorities, which also monitor bathing water quality and provide public information on water quality in summer.
The EPA collates the results of monitoring and compiles a national report for the EU.