Madam, - Ultan O'Broin (September 4th) is correct in pointing out the stupidity of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council's decision to ban sea-angling from beaches in the area. However, it isn't the council's only shortcoming of late.
As a regular swimmer at Seapoint, I am quite unsettled about the state of the water on a beach with Blue Flag status. Phone calls by myself and fellow bathers to the council's relevant department did little to dispel my fears.
The sea water has been discoloured and a strong, unpleasant stench has pervaded the air in this area for the past fortnight. A glance at the area's water quality chart shows that it has grossly and repeatedly exceeded the set limits for healthy bathing on a number of occasions in recent weeks.
This is something the public notice posted alongside it by Dún Laoghaire County Council sought to play down, preferring to blame the problem largely on the presence of some variety of algae which had been washed en masse into the sea during the wet summer.
It's not good enough for Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council to blame weather conditions for the problem in a country renowned for its frequent rainfall. The presence of algae couldn't account for the diminished water quality. This is due to an excess of faecal matter present in the water, simple as that. The public, whose health has been jeopardised due to this situation, deserve an adequate, honest response from those in the county council who are remunerated from the public purse. - Yours, etc,
DAVID MARLBOROUGH, Kenilworth Park, Dublin 6.