Watergate Bay water quality
AMBERdesignated bathing water · · South West Water
Watergate Bay is a designated bathing water in Cornwall, currently rated AMBER for swimming — A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore. Its latest Environment Agency classification is excellent (2025), and 132 storm-overflow spills were recorded nearby in 2025. Below: live risk, recent spills, official samples, rainfall, tides and nearby reports.
Current status
Risk: AMBER A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore.
- Active overflows nearby: 0
- Recent overflows (48h): 2
- Rainfall (48h): 20.1 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)
- 2026-08-19 04:42 · ended~3.4 km
- 2026-08-27 02:28 · ended~3.4 km
- 2026-08-27 02:30 · ended~3.4 km
In the news nearby
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- Why some storm overflow alerts may not mean a spill · 2026-08-25
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- South West Water owner says firm must rebuild trust after parasite outbreak · 2026-06-10
- Antibiotic residues in wastewater found to fuel drug resistance : study - Xinhua · 2026-06-09
Storm-overflow spills near here, by year (EDM)
Recent spills near here (precise, SWW)
- spill, 6 min2026-08-27 · ~3.4 km
- spill, 4 min2026-08-26 · ~3.4 km
- spill, 10 min2026-08-19 · ~3.4 km
- spill, 10 min2026-06-19 · ~3.4 km
- spill, 10 min2026-06-19 · ~3.4 km
Full spill history near Watergate Bay
Download CSVEvery storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Watergate Bay, newest first.
8 discharge events
| Start | End | Outfall | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-27 02:30 | 2026-08-27 03:45 | UNNAMED DITCH,TRENANCE LAKE(S) | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-08-27 02:28 | 2026-08-27 02:34 | UNNAMED DITCH,TRENANCE LAKE(S) | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-08-19 04:42 | 2026-08-19 05:15 | UNNAMED DITCH,TRENANCE LAKE(S) | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-06-19 23:48 | 2026-06-19 23:58 | UNNAMED DITCH,TRENANCE LAKE(S) | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-05-03 17:29 | 2026-05-03 18:59 | ATLANTIC OCEAN(T) | ~4.4 km |
| 2026-03-03 13:37 | 2026-03-03 13:50 | NEWQUAY BAY (C) | ~4.1 km |
| 2026-02-27 21:40 | 2026-03-06 03:58 | STREAM/ATLANTIC OCEAN (S) | ~0.2 km |
| 2026-02-05 09:27 | 2026-02-05 09:30 | RIVER MENALHYL (S) | ~3.4 km |
19 precise spill records (duration & volume)
| When | Detail | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-27 02:28 | spill, 6 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-08-26 22:50 | spill, 4 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-08-19 04:42 | spill, 10 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-06-19 23:48 | spill, 10 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-06-19 23:48 | spill, 10 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-05-03 17:29 | spill, 90 min | ~4.4 km |
| 2026-05-03 17:29 | spill, 90 min | ~4.4 km |
| 2026-03-03 13:37 | spill, 13 min | ~4.1 km |
| 2026-03-03 13:37 | spill, 13 min | ~4.1 km |
| 2026-03-02 12:55 | spill, 173 min | ~3.0 km |
| 2026-03-02 12:55 | spill, 173 min | ~3.0 km |
| 2026-02-27 21:40 | spill, 9018 min | ~0.2 km |
| 2026-02-27 21:40 | spill, 9018 min | ~0.2 km |
| 2026-02-27 18:45 | spill, 16 min | ~2.4 km |
| 2026-02-27 18:45 | spill, 16 min | ~2.4 km |
| 2026-02-25 12:14 | spill, 6 min | ~2.1 km |
| 2026-02-25 12:14 | spill, 6 min | ~2.1 km |
| 2026-02-05 09:27 | spill, 3 min | ~3.4 km |
| 2026-02-05 09:27 | spill, 3 min | ~3.4 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 | 19 cfu/100ml | 29 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2021 | — | 5 | 14 cfu/100ml | 12 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2022 | — | 10 | 14 cfu/100ml | 15 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2023 | — | 10 | 11 cfu/100ml | 13 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2024 | — | 10 | 14 cfu/100ml | 13 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2025 | excellent | 20 | 11 cfu/100ml | 10 cfu/100ml | 0 |
| 2026 | — | 15 | 11 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.
Watergate Bay — frequently asked questions
Is it safe to swim at Watergate Bay today?
Watergate Bay is currently rated AMBER: A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore. This is guidance only — also check official alerts and use your judgement.
Has there been a sewage spill near Watergate Bay?
132 storm-overflow spills were recorded near Watergate Bay in 2025 (EA Event Duration Monitoring), and 8 spill events have been logged nearby so far this year.
What is Watergate Bay's bathing water classification?
Watergate Bay is classified excellent for 2025 by the Environment Agency.
Data & provenance
- Last updated
- 2 h ago (2026-08-27 15:45 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, 5 outfalls monitored within 5 km.
- Risk model
- v0.4
- Download
- Sample timeline (JSON) · All beaches (CSV)
🔗 Embed this beach status on your site
Surf clubs, hotels and councils — paste this into your page to show a live Watergate Bay status card: