Kennack Sands water quality
GREENdesignated bathing water · · South West Water
Kennack Sands is a designated bathing water in Cornwall, currently rated GREEN for swimming — No recent overflow, no pollution warning, low rainfall, no high samples. 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: GREEN No recent overflow, no pollution warning, low rainfall, no high samples.
- Active overflows nearby: 0
- Recent overflows (48h): 0
- Rainfall (48h): 4.0 mm
Official EA classification
excellent (2025)
Latest official sample
2026-08-17 — E.coli 10, enterococci 10 cfu/100ml
Latest independent sample
None published
Pollution & environment data
Recent storm overflows nearby (30 days)
No spills recorded within 5 km in the last 30 days.
In the news nearby
No recent local news matched.
Storm-overflow spills near here, by year (EDM)
Recent spills near here (precise, SWW)
No precise spill events recorded near here recently.
Full spill history near Kennack Sands
Download CSVEvery storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Kennack Sands, newest first.
3 discharge events
| Start | End | Outfall | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
6 precise spill records (duration & volume)
| When | Detail | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| 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 in 2026 was broadly level with 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 | — | 11 | 10 cfu/100ml | 10 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 GREEN: No recent overflow, no pollution warning, low rainfall, no high samples. 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 3 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
- 35 min ago (2026-08-26 15:15 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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