Porthcothan water quality

RED

designated bathing water · · South West Water

Porthcothan 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 152 storm-overflow spills were recorded nearby in 2025. Below: live risk, recent spills, official samples, rainfall, tides and nearby reports.

Safe to swim right now?
Avoid — pollution risk
Storm overflow discharging within 5 km right now. Incoming/high tide may carry discharge closer to shore.
Do not rely solely on this website for health decisions. Check official alerts and use your own judgement. Seek medical advice if you are unwell.

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): 8
  • Rainfall (48h): 33.0 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

33.0 mm
Rainfall 48h
68.8 mm
Rainfall 7d
3
Outfalls within 5 km
152
Spills (2025, official)
20
Spills 2026 so far (live)
14
Spills last 30d
high 2.79m
Tide now

Recent storm overflows nearby (30 days)

In the news nearby

Storm-overflow spills near here, by year (EDM)

Recent spills near here (precise, SWW)

Full spill history near Porthcothan

Download CSV

Every storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Porthcothan, newest first.

20 discharge events
StartEndOutfallDistance
2026-10-24 11:46ongoingMOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-24 11:18ongoingMOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-23 19:312026-10-23 19:46MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-23 19:112026-10-23 19:34MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-23 05:452026-10-23 12:31MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-23 05:242026-10-23 12:16MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-23 00:152026-10-23 01:15MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-22 23:582026-10-23 00:52MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-22 21:012026-10-22 21:16MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-22 20:342026-10-22 21:03MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-21 22:302026-10-21 22:45MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-21 22:042026-10-21 22:28MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-15 21:302026-10-15 21:45MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-10-15 20:562026-10-15 21:32MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-09-08 05:492026-09-08 10:59MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-08-27 03:372026-08-27 04:00MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-07-01 09:002026-07-01 09:08TREVONE BAY~4.9 km
2026-06-18 08:452026-06-18 08:47TREYARNON STREAM~2.0 km
2026-06-17 07:262026-06-17 07:43MOTHER IVEYS BAY (C)~4.2 km
2026-03-02 14:432026-03-03 01:13TREVONE BAY~4.9 km
21 precise spill records (duration & volume)
WhenDetailDistance
2026-10-24 11:18spill, 192 min~4.2 km
2026-10-23 19:11spill, 23 min~4.2 km
2026-10-23 05:24spill, 400 min~4.2 km
2026-10-22 23:58spill, 53 min~4.2 km
2026-10-22 20:34spill, 29 min~4.2 km
2026-10-21 22:04spill, 23 min~4.2 km
2026-10-15 20:56spill, 36 min~4.2 km
2026-10-15 20:30spill, 23 min~4.4 km
2026-09-08 05:49spill, 310 min~4.2 km
2026-08-27 03:37spill, 23 min~4.2 km
2026-07-01 09:00spill, 9 min~4.9 km
2026-06-18 08:45spill, 2 min~2.0 km
2026-06-18 08:45spill, 2 min~2.0 km
2026-06-17 07:26spill, 17 min~4.2 km
2026-06-17 07:26spill, 17 min~4.2 km
2026-03-03 12:25spill, 10 min~4.0 km
2026-03-03 12:25spill, 10 min~4.0 km
2026-03-02 14:43spill, 630 min~4.9 km
2026-03-02 14:43spill, 630 min~4.9 km
2026-03-02 12:55spill, 173 min~4.4 km
2026-03-02 12:55spill, 173 min~4.4 km
Take action — email SWW / your MPGot ill here? Build a reportReport pollution

Water quality — 7-year trend

Water quality improved in 2026: average E. coli was 42% lower than 2025.

YearEA classificationSamplesE. coli (geo-mean)Enterococci (geo-mean)High readings
2019—1218 cfu/100ml16 cfu/100ml1 of 12
2020—326 cfu/100ml21 cfu/100ml0
2021—2015 cfu/100ml16 cfu/100ml0
2022—2014 cfu/100ml14 cfu/100ml0
2023—2016 cfu/100ml17 cfu/100ml1 of 20
2024—1516 cfu/100ml18 cfu/100ml1 of 15
2025excellent1019 cfu/100ml18 cfu/100ml0
2026—1511 cfu/100ml11 cfu/100ml0

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.

Porthcothan — frequently asked questions

Is it safe to swim at Porthcothan today?

Porthcothan 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 Porthcothan?

152 storm-overflow spills were recorded near Porthcothan in 2025 (EA Event Duration Monitoring), and 20 spill events have been logged nearby so far this year.

What is Porthcothan's bathing water classification?

Porthcothan is classified excellent for 2025 by the Environment Agency.

Data & provenance

Last updated
9 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
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Sample timeline (JSON) · All beaches (CSV)
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