This west facing storm beach is typically featureless and shallow with just a few patches of shingle and slightly deeper gullies towards low water. The Morfa Dyffryn Site of Special Scientific Interest is located just to the north of the bathing area. The water quality sample point is located opposite the entrance to the beach.
Investigations will be undertaken where and when necessary e.g. where there are elevated bacterial results in the bathing water that cannot be simply explained due to weather conditions.
The Talybont and Dyffryn coastline has no direct discharges of sewage effluent. A survey of the coast in 1999 revealed no obvious water quality influences to this bathing water.
Modern sewerage systems have two separate systems, one takes foul sewage to sewage treatment, the other takes rainwater runoff through surface water drains to rivers, lakes and the sea. Misconnections occur when waste water pipes are plumbed into surface water drains instead of the foul water sewerage system. This can give rise to pollution when the waste water is discharged directly to the environment through the surface water drain. For example, a washing machine or toilet may be incorrectly plumbed so that it discharges to the surface drain rather than the foul sewage drain. There are no known misconnections in the Talybont area.
Phytoplankton (microscopic algae) naturally increase in number at certain times of the year. This process is known as a phytoplankton bloom.
Algal Blooms can occur at any beach during the bathing season and are usually noticeable by a surface scum. This beach has no history of such blooms.
Streams are typically affected by sewage or industrial run off from further up the catchment. The River Ysgethin flows onto Talybont beach. This is a small river that drains a catchment largely dedicated to sheep rearing, which could have an effect on water quality following periods of heavy rain fall.
Sewage from the villages of Talybont and Dyffryn Ardudwy is treated at the Dwr Cymru sewage treatment works at Dyffryn Ardudwy. Treated effluent discharges to the Dyffryn Main Drain which is inland and flows northwards towards Llanbedr and away from the bathing water.
Natural Resources Wales samplers make visual observations of the beach at every visit. This includes assessments of sewage debris, animal faeces, litter and oil or tar. At Tal-y-Bont, data are available for the four year assessment period from 2020-2023. Sewage debris was not observed at this bathing water. Trace amounts of animal faeces were noted at the site on a minority of occasions. Trace amounts of litter were observed at the bathing water the majority of the time and in greater amounts on less than ten per cent of occasions. Oil and tarry residues were not noted at this site.
There are a number of large caravan sites along this stretch of relatively flat sandy coastline. All of these sites are connected to the public sewer. Poorly maintained private sewage treatment facilities could be a source of pollution, therefore the registration of all private sewage systems in Wales was required by 30 June 2012. The primary aim of this exercise was to provide increased protection for the environment and sensitive features such as bathing water beaches. Where properties are identified in the catchment that are not on mains sewerage, Natural Resources Wales will endeavour to ensure registration has been made.
The natural drainage (hydrological) catchment is mainly rural. Talybont is a small village about 5 miles to the north of Barmouth along the A496, which is the main coastal road. Although only a small village, there are many caravan sites and holiday parks around the village, particularly on the seaward side of the A496. The majority of the land surrounding the beach is agricultural.
Seaweed (macroalgae) and phytoplankton (microscopic algae) are a natural part of the marine and freshwater environment. Below we note whether these have been recorded in quantities sufficient to be a nuisance.
The majority of sewers in Wales are “combined sewers” and carry both sewage and surface water from roofs and drains. A storm overflow operates during heavy rainfall when the sewerage system becomes overwhelmed by the amount of surface water. The overflow prevents sewage from backing up pipes and flooding properties and gardens. An emergency overflow will only operate infrequently, for example due to pump failure or blockage in the sewerage system.
Heavy rain falling on pavements and roads often flows into surface water drains or highway drains, ending up in local rivers and, ultimately, the sea. The quality of bathing water may be adversely affected as a result of such events.
It is Natural Resources Wales' role to drive improvement of water quality at bathing waters that are at risk of failing European standards. It is natural for water to run off the land to the sea. Water quality at a bathing water is dependent upon the type and area of land (the catchment) draining to the water and the activities undertaken in that catchment. The following sections serve to highlight potential sources of pollution, conditions under which they may arise and measures being put in place to improve water quality.
