The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (April 26) released the latest grading of water quality for 39 gazetted beaches (see Note 1) and one non-gazetted beach (see Note 2).
Twenty-eight beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1), nine as Fair (Grade 2), two as Poor (Grade 3) and one as Very Poor (Grade 4).
Grade 1 beaches are:
| Big Wave Bay Beach* | Lower Cheung Sha Beach |
| Cafeteria New Beach | Middle Bay Beach |
| Cafeteria Old Beach | Pui O Beach* |
| Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach* | Repulse Bay Beach* |
| Chung Hom Kok Beach | Silver Mine Bay Beach* |
| Clear Water Bay Second Beach* | Silverstrand Beach* |
| Deep Water Bay Beach* | South Bay Beach* |
| Golden Beach* | St. Stephen's Beach |
| Hap Mun Bay Beach* | Stanley Main Beach* |
| Hung Shing Yeh Beach* | Tai Po Lung Mei Beach* |
| Kadoorie Beach* | Tong Fuk Beach |
| Kiu Tsui Beach | Trio Beach |
| Kwun Yam Beach | Turtle Cove Beach |
| Lo So Shing Beach | Upper Cheung Sha Beach |
Grade 2 beaches are:
| Approach Beach | Discovery Bay Tai Pak Beach |
| Butterfly Beach* | Hoi Mei Wan Beach |
| Casam Beach* | Shek O Beach* |
| Clear Water Bay First Beach | Ting Kau Beach* |
| Castle Peak Beach |
Grade 3 beaches are:
| Lido Beach* | Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach* |
Grade 4 beach is:
| Anglers' Beach* |
Compared with the grading released last week, Clear Water Bay First Beach, Discovery Bay Tai Pak Beach and Shek O Beach have been changed from Grade 1 to Grade 2, Lido Beach from Grade 2 to Grade 3, and Anglers' Beach Grade 3 to Grade 4.
"We observed water quality deterioration at Anglers' Beach, which was largely due to the heavy rain brought to Hong Kong throughout the week. We will step up our monitoring until the water quality returns normal," an EPD spokesman said.
Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades, namely Good (Grade 1), Fair (Grade 2), Poor (Grade 3) and Very Poor (Grade 4), according to the level of E. coli in the water. Grades are calculated on the basis of the geometric mean of the E. coli counts on the five most recent sampling occasions.
While the ratings represent the general water quality at the beaches, the EPD spokesman reminded members of the public that water quality could be temporarily affected during and after periods of heavy rain. Bathers should avoid swimming at beaches for up to three days after a tropical cyclone or heavy rainfall.
A summary of beach grades is published weekly before the weekend. The latest beach grades based on the most current data may be obtained from the EPD's website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666. Members of the public can also obtain the latest daily water quality forecast information for all beaches that are open for swimming through the Beach Water Quality Forecast mobile application (available for download from: www.epd.gov.hk/en/BWQApp) or the dedicated beach water quality forecast page (www.epd.gov.hk/en/BWQForecast) on the EPD's beach thematic website.
Note 1: Lifesaving services are provided by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at 22 gazetted beaches, marked with an asterisk (*) above, from April 1. Due to the damage caused to the footpaths leading to Chung Hom Kok Beach by landslides, the beach is temporarily closed until further notice. For details, please refer to the Leisure and Cultural Services Department’s Special Announcement (www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/beach/index.html).
Note 2: This refers to Discovery Bay Tai Pak Beach which is a non-gazetted beach that has no lifesaving service.
Follow this news feed: East Asia