The EU environment Agency, EEA confirms that the majority of bathing areas in Europe a high to very high water quality. Because of the Corona-crisis, the authority, however, has a specific advice to swimmers of Europe.

Copenhagen (Reuters) - Germany's lakes, rivers and coastal waters provide, with few exceptions, a continued excellent water quality. The proceeds from the annual bathing water report of European environment Agency EEA, the Copenhagen-based EU Agency introduced on Monday.

Accordingly, 92.5 percent of all German bathing waters in 2019 had excellent water quality. More than 98 percent complied with the minimum EU standards.

Only eight of the 2291 studied German bathing places by fell, this time in the annual evaluation, because there are too many harmful bacteria were discovered in the water quality of the Elbe river at Brokdorf in Schleswig-Holstein was in the EEA, the report assesses, as well as defective as the one on the North sea coast Wremen and the Weser beach sand stedt, in lower Saxony, the gold barn-lake in baden-württemberg, Kehl and the Klostersee Triefenstein in the North of Bavaria. Further, by Faller, the spree lagoon were, therefore, in Brandenburg, Lübben, as well as two Places on the southern shore of the Sweet lake in Saxony-Anhalt. In 2018, were considered in Germany, six as poor.

For the survey has looked at the EEA, the data of 30 European countries, to the load 22 295 waters with Faecal bacteria, which can cause diseases. Specifically, it deals with two types of bacteria: intestinal enterococci and Escherichia coli. The quality depends on the proven amount of these bacteria, which originate especially from waste water and from agriculture. In the case of a classification as defective are advised to a Bathing prohibition, warnings, or other measures.

The data refer to the season of the previous year - the Corona-crisis had no impact on the values. The EEA recommends badefreu which, therefore, is to inquire at the local and national authorities and beach operators, according to the latest information about possible security measures, before you bounce in this summer into the cool water.

Europe and the EEA agreed on the waters overall, a continued high water quality. In all 28 EU member States - in 2019, the UK was still one of the European Union as well as Albania and Switzerland have been classified, nearly 85 per cent of all bathing sites as a excellent, around 95 per cent made it at least to the touch is sufficient. In General, the experts came to the realization that the bathing water quality in the coastal is better than Inland.

Clean bathing water is perceived usually as a given, is but, in fact, a common achievement in Europe, said EU environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius. The new annual report confirm once more that Europeans could enjoy bathing in the waters of very high quality standards.

Germany was again above the European average, and came behind Cyprus, Austria, Malta, Greece and Croatia on rank six of the countries with the highest proportion of excellent considered bathing areas. The Germans are particularly popular holiday countries Italy and Spain, landed with 88.4 percent of excellent bathing water is also at the front of the midfield.

Already in the previous year report, the EU authorities had issued the German waters mainly good testimony: at that Time, approximately 98 percent of the investigated bathing sites in the Federal Republic met the EU minimum standards, 92.7 percent had received the best grade.

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