The campaign to make Devil’s Point and Firestone Bay an official designated bathing water has reached a key milestone, after an official application was submitted to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Luke Pollard, MP for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport, who has been building support for the campaign over the past year, said securing official bathing water status for Devil’s Point will give wild swimmers in Plymouth ‘peace of mind’ about water quality on the bay.
Luke launched the Devil’s Point campaign in January this year following reports of regular raw sewage discharge in Britain’s seas and rivers. Over 1,000 people signed his petition, which he presented to Parliament in March 2022, to make Devil’s Point an official bathing water. In June, over 6,500 swimmers and other water users were counted at the beach as part of the application. Nearly 100 local people volunteered to count swimmers for a two-hour shift, delivering the months’ worth of usage data required by Government for the bathing water application.
Plymouth City Council have been supporting the campaign with the council undertaking surveys of local businesses in support of the application and submitting the final application.
If made an official bathing water, the Environment Agency would have to regularly test the water quality of the sea at Devil’s Point, as well as making the results publicly available.
Luke Pollard said:
“This is an important milestone for the Devil’s Point campaign. As a regular sea swimmer from Devil’s Point I want to know the quality of the water I’m swimming in. With routine raw sewage discharges into our rivers and seas happening far too often bathing water status is essential for the peace of mind of the thousands of swimmers at Devil’s Point.
“I’m proud to have led the campaign and grateful to the hundred volunteers who helped collect data on usage, collected names on the petition and promoted this wonderful and special piece of water.
“In 2017 I proposed Plymouth Sound became the UK’s first National Marine Park which it now is. This year let’s make Devil’s Point an official bathing water with regular water testing and the results published for all to see.”
Councillor Bill Wakeham, Cabinet Member for Environment on Plymouth City Council, said:
“I am delighted to add my support to the application for Firestone Bay to become a designated bathing water. If Firestone Bay can be added to Plymouth’s existing designated bathing waters at East and West Hoe, we can hopefully give the people of Plymouth confidence that Devil’s Point is also safe to swim in.
“The Environment Agency would be required to monitor the quality of the water and notify the public taking action if pollution reaches unsafe levels.
“Firestone Bay has long been a popular spot for local swimmers and outdoor sports enthusiasts. It would be reassuring for the water users across the National Marine Park to know that the water quality is monitored so that any instances of contamination, such as after heavy rainfall, can be assessed and evaluated.
“I am also very keen to work with South West Water and the Environment Agency to ensure that water quality entering the River Plym from Plympton and Plymstock meets the same stringent conditions as the water quality entering around Plymouth Hoe.”
