Kennack Sands water quality
REDdesignated bathing water · · South West Water
Kennack Sands is a designated bathing water in Cornwall, currently rated RED for swimming — Storm overflow discharging within 5 km right now. Incoming/high tide may carry discharge closer to shore. Its latest Environment Agency classification is excellent (2025), and 77 storm-overflow spills were recorded nearby in 2025. Below: live risk, recent spills, official samples, rainfall, tides and nearby reports.
Current status
Risk: RED Storm overflow discharging within 5 km right now. Incoming/high tide may carry discharge closer to shore.
- Active overflows nearby: 2
- Recent overflows (48h): 0
- Rainfall (48h): 37.6 mm
Official EA classification
excellent (2025)
Latest official sample
2026-09-25 — E.coli 10, enterococci 10 cfu/100ml
Latest independent sample
None published
Pollution & environment data
Recent storm overflows nearby (30 days)
- 2026-10-24 11:03 · active~3.9 km
- 2026-10-24 11:15 · active~3.9 km
In the news nearby
No recent local news matched.
Storm-overflow spills near here, by year (EDM)
Recent spills near here (precise, SWW)
- spill, 206 min2026-10-24 · ~3.9 km
- spill, 29 min2026-09-08 · ~4.2 km
- spill, 144 min2026-09-08 · ~3.9 km
- spill, 616 min2026-08-30 · ~4.2 km
- spill, 126 min2026-08-30 · ~3.9 km
- spill, 448 min2026-08-29 · ~4.2 km
- spill, 125 min2026-08-29 · ~3.9 km
Full spill history near Kennack Sands
Download CSVEvery storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Kennack Sands, newest first.
15 discharge events
| Start | End | Outfall | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-24 11:15 | ongoing | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-10-24 11:03 | ongoing | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-09-08 07:07 | 2026-09-08 07:36 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-09-08 06:19 | 2026-09-08 08:44 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-30 13:15 | 2026-08-31 00:00 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-30 12:54 | 2026-08-30 23:45 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-30 12:45 | 2026-08-30 15:00 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-30 12:39 | 2026-08-30 14:45 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-29 04:45 | 2026-08-29 12:15 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-29 04:31 | 2026-08-29 12:00 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-29 04:30 | 2026-08-29 06:30 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-29 03:37 | 2026-08-29 05:42 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-05-02 14:28 | 2026-05-02 16:03 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (CHURCH COVE ) | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-02-23 01:23 | 2026-02-23 01:50 | CHURCH COVE (C) | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-02-18 09:41 | 2026-02-19 10:39 | ENGLISH CHANNEL (C) | ~2.3 km |
13 precise spill records (duration & volume)
| When | Detail | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-24 11:03 | spill, 206 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-09-08 07:07 | spill, 29 min | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-09-08 06:19 | spill, 144 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-30 12:54 | spill, 616 min | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-30 12:39 | spill, 126 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-08-29 04:31 | spill, 448 min | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-08-29 03:37 | spill, 125 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-05-02 14:28 | spill, 95 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-05-02 14:28 | spill, 95 min | ~3.9 km |
| 2026-02-23 01:23 | spill, 28 min | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-02-23 01:23 | spill, 28 min | ~4.2 km |
| 2026-02-18 09:41 | spill, 1498 min | ~2.3 km |
| 2026-02-18 09:41 | spill, 1498 min | ~2.3 km |
Water quality — 7-year trend
Water quality worsened in 2026: average E. coli was 21% higher than 2025.
| Year | EA classification | Samples | E. coli (geo-mean) | Enterococci (geo-mean) | High readings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | — | 3 | 10 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 3 | 22 cfu/100ml | 25 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2021 | — | 5 | 10 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2022 | — | 10 | 10 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2023 | — | 10 | 12 cfu/100ml | 11 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2024 | — | 10 | 11 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2025 | excellent | 20 | 10 cfu/100ml | 11 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2026 | — | 15 | 12 cfu/100ml | 12 cfu/100ml | 0 |
Geometric mean of Environment Agency samples per calendar year (the standard bathing-water statistic). "High readings" are samples at or above 500 E. coli or 200 enterococci cfu/100ml.
Kennack Sands — frequently asked questions
Is it safe to swim at Kennack Sands today?
Kennack Sands is currently rated RED: Storm overflow discharging within 5 km right now. Incoming/high tide may carry discharge closer to shore. This is guidance only — also check official alerts and use your judgement.
Has there been a sewage spill near Kennack Sands?
77 storm-overflow spills were recorded near Kennack Sands in 2025 (EA Event Duration Monitoring), and 15 spill events have been logged nearby so far this year.
What is Kennack Sands's bathing water classification?
Kennack Sands is classified excellent for 2025 by the Environment Agency.
Data & provenance
- Last updated
- 8 min ago (2026-10-24 15:00 UTC)
- Sources
- Environment Agency (samples & classification), South West Water (overflows), EA EDM (annual spills), Open-Meteo (rainfall & tide). Full list on about.
- Confidence
- High — official classification, 3 outfalls monitored within 5 km.
- Risk model
- v0.4
- Download
- Sample timeline (JSON) · All beaches (CSV)
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