Porthallow water quality
GREENdesignated bathing water · · South West Water
Porthallow 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 23 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): 1.3 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)
- spill, 9 min2026-06-10 · ~2.0 km
- spill, 9 min2026-06-10 · ~2.0 km
Full spill history near Porthallow
Download CSVEvery storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Porthallow, newest first.
3 discharge events
| Start | End | Outfall | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-10 14:41 | 2026-06-10 14:50 | (S) ST KEVERNE STREAM | ~2.0 km |
| 2026-05-15 10:33 | 2026-05-15 10:35 | THE HELFORD CREEK(E) | ~4.9 km |
| 2026-01-29 16:31 | 2026-01-30 04:35 | PORTHALLOW STREAM (S) | ~0.1 km |
6 precise spill records (duration & volume)
| When | Detail | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-10 14:41 | spill, 9 min | ~2.0 km |
| 2026-06-10 14:41 | spill, 9 min | ~2.0 km |
| 2026-05-15 10:33 | spill, 2 min | ~4.9 km |
| 2026-05-15 10:33 | spill, 2 min | ~4.9 km |
| 2026-01-29 16:31 | spill, 724 min | ~0.1 km |
| 2026-01-29 16:31 | spill, 724 min | ~0.1 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 | — | 12 | 16 cfu/100ml | 15 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 3 | 28 cfu/100ml | 63 cfu/100ml | 1 of 3 |
| 2021 | — | 20 | 17 cfu/100ml | 17 cfu/100ml | 1 of 20 |
| 2022 | — | 20 | 17 cfu/100ml | 11 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2023 | — | 20 | 12 cfu/100ml | 11 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2024 | — | 20 | 14 cfu/100ml | 11 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2025 | excellent | 10 | 10 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2026 | — | 8 | 11 cfu/100ml | 11 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.
Porthallow — frequently asked questions
Is it safe to swim at Porthallow today?
Porthallow 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 Porthallow?
23 storm-overflow spills were recorded near Porthallow in 2025 (EA Event Duration Monitoring), and 3 spill events have been logged nearby so far this year.
What is Porthallow's bathing water classification?
Porthallow is classified excellent for 2025 by the Environment Agency.
Data & provenance
- Last updated
- 5 min ago (2026-08-26 18:30 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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