Cyprus bathing quality fares well

The EU Bathing Water Directive lays down two sets of bathing water quality standards: minimum imperative values, with which compliance is mandatory, and stricter guide values, with which compliance is desirable but not obligatory. Member States are required to monitor the water quality in their designated bathing areas through regular sampling during the season and to report the results to the European Commission.

In the 2006 bathing season the average compliance rate with the mandatory values was 96.1% for EU coastal bathing areas (96.1% in 2005) and 88.6% for inland freshwater sites (85.7% in 2005).

Compliance with the guide values averaged 88.4% for coastal sites (89.1% in 2005) and 63.8% for inland freshwater areas (63.1% in 2005).

Average compliance with mandatory values in 2006 for the EU-15 was 96.2% for coastal areas (13,975 sites) and 90.0% for freshwater areas (5,684 sites). Compliance rates in the EU-10 Member States averaged 94.9% for coastal waters and 81.2% for freshwater areas.

The bathing season in Cyprus opened on 15 May and closed on 31 October.

Since Cyprus has no freshwater bathing areas all 100 bathing areas monitored were coastal. No new bathing sites were reported since the start of reporting in 2004 when Cyprus joined the European Union.

During the 2006 bathing season all 100 sites were sufficiently sampled. Compliance in 2006 with mandatory values and the more stringent guide values stood at 99%, down from 100% in 2005. All bathing sites were opened.

All monitoring information of bathing sites is available to the public on registers held by the Department of Medical and Public Health Services and the Environment Service. The 2006 Annual Report on the quality of the bathing water in Cyprus was also available on-line.