Blackpool is a resort town on Lancashire's north west coast. Blackpool South bathing
water is sandy and very flat with some small grooves caused by the waves. There is
a promenade running alongside the beach. Blackpool South Pier lies to the north of
the bathing water. The Blackpool Pleasure Beach attraction is located behind the beach.
The Abercorn Place and Wetherby & Albany Avenue overflows located to the south of
Blackpool South are no longer in use. The Lennox Gate/Harrowside Pumping Station only
discharges under exceptional conditions.
There are several small surface water outfalls which discharge close to the beach.
There is no impact on bathing water quality from these outfalls.
There are numerous storm, emergency and surface water outfalls that discharge to the
River Ribble and its estuary. Sewer overflows operating during, and following, periods
of heavy rain, can result in reduced bathing water quality at Blackpool South. A significant
improvement programme to overflows around the Preston area was completed by United
Utilities in 2013 to protect bathing water quality. The programme included the construction
of a large storage tunnel (40,790 m3) to the south of the River Ribble to store storm
flows as well as a number of other individual schemes to improve storm and emergency
overflows.
The Manchester Square Pumping Station and Bloomfield Road storage tanks, both located
in Blackpool, were upgraded in 2010 alongside improvements to Fleetwood Sewage Treatment
Works. Further work providing additional storm sewage storage at Fleetwood Sewage
Treatment Works and the Bloomfield Road storage tanks was completed in 2015 further
improving Blackpool South's bathing water quality.
As part of the improvement programme of work for United Utilities (from 2015 to 2020)
the storm overflows from Chorley, Blackburn and Preston Sewage Treatment Works will
be improved to protect bathing water quality. Work has already been carried out to
reduce the number of storm discharges from the Manchester Square, Anchorsholme and
Chatsworth Avenue Pumping Stations which will help to improve bathing water quality
on the Fylde coast in Lancashire. The programme also requires that all storm overflows
close to bathing waters have equipment installed to monitor spills to the environment.
This will help to identify where bathing water improvements may be needed in the future.
This bathing water is included in the Surfers Against Sewage “Safer Seas Service”.
This service can alert you to Combined Storm Sewer Overflow discharges via a phone
App and in addition, it includes the Environment Agency Pollution Risk Forecast warnings
where they are available. Further details of the service can be found at - http://www.sas.org.uk/safer-seas-service/
and via United Utilities website at http://www.unitedutilities.com/Bathing-Waters-Map.aspx.
There are a number of water company assets located on the River Ribble and its estuary
which can impact on bathing water quality at Blackpool South. The Environment Agency
has worked closely with United Utilities since the 1990s to make significant improvements
to the sewerage infrastructure around Blackpool South bathing water.
Sea Change, a £500 million coastal clean-up project, was launched in 1994 by the Environment
Agency in conjunction with United Utilities, to improve bathing water quality in the
North West, particularly along the Fylde Coast. Under this programme United Utilities
made improvements in the Blackpool area by constructing a tunnel to provide storage
for storm discharges and transferring flows from four coastal pumping stations serving
the Blackpool area to a new sewage treatment works at Fleetwood.
To the south of Blackpool South bathing water United Utilities has upgraded Southport,
Wigan, Skelmersdale, Hesketh Bank and Preston Sewage Treatment Works to ensure that
discharges are treated and disinfected to protect bathing water quality. Large storage
tanks have also been built at Preston, Wigan, Southport and Fleetwood Sewage Treatment
Works, together with large storage tanks in central Blackpool to reduce the storm
overflows. Improvements have also been made to the Fairhaven, Lytham and Ballam Road
Pumping Stations, to protect bathing water quality.
Since the mid-1990s, the Environment Agency has studied the Ribble Estuary to identify
water quality issues that may impact on the bathing waters at the mouth of the estuary,
including Blackpool South. A computer model has been developed to predict the impact
of water company investment schemes on water quality in the estuary.
In 2011 the Environment Agency surveyed the catchment around Blackpool South to identify
sources of contamination. Where significant issues were found these have been investigated
and improvements made where needed.
The Environment Agency contributed to a 4 year research project - Cloud 2 Coast -
between 2011 and 2015 delivered by the Universities of Sheffield, Cardiff and Aberystwyth.
The project developed river and coastal models of the Ribble catchment to understand
the catchment sources which could impact bathing water quality. The project looked
at options for managing these sources to improve bathing water quality.
The Blackpool promenade has highway and surface water drains which flow onto the beach.
These are not known to cause a decline in bathing water quality.
For the four year (2020-2023) assessment period where data is available, seaweed (macroalgae)
was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but was observed as being
present on 70% of visits. This bathing water does not have a history of large amounts
of seaweed (macro algae).
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.
The Environment Agency has investigated a contaminated surface water discharging close
to Blackpool South bathing water and worked with the owner during 2015 to rectify
the pollution source.
For the four year (2020-2023) assessment period where data is available, phytoplankton
(microscopic algae) was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but
was observed as being present on 5% of visits. This bathing water can be affected
by occasional blooms ofPhytoplankton (microscopic algae) which are not harmful, but
can result in the water appearing discoloured or a foam forming on the water.
The risks to human health from contact, ingestion or inhalation with marine algae
that currently occur in UK coastal waters are considered to be low. However, some
individuals may be more sensitive and display some reactions.
A common marine algae found in UK coastal waters is Phaeocystis, which is often mistaken
for sewage as it forms foam and a brown scum, but it is non-toxic.
This bathing water is subject to short term pollution procedures. The Environment
Agency makes a daily pollution risk forecast at this site based on the effects of
rain, tide, sunlight and seasonality on bathing water quality. These factors affect
the levels of bacteria that get washed into the sea from livestock, sewage and urban
drainage via rivers and streams and how they disperse.
When these factors combine to make short term pollution likely we issue a pollution
risk warning on this website and the beach manager will display a sign advising against
bathing at the bathing water. After a short term pollution event, levels of bacteria
typically return to normal after a day or so but it’s possible to have several warning
days in a row. Details of the work to reduce the sources of bacteria at this bathing
water are detailed in this profile.
In 2023 78 pollution risk warnings were issued for this bathing water.
All bathing waters have the potential to be affected by a pollution incident and if
this occurs a pollution risk warning will be issued with associated advice against
bathing on this website.
A step change improvement in bathing water quality at Blackpool South was identified
from 5th May 2014 due to improvements made to United Utilities assets within the Ribble
catchment. Bathing water quality monitoring samples collected prior to this date shall
not be used for classification.
There are a number of sewage treatment works, including Southport and Preston, which
can impact Blackpool South bathing water quality. However, they all have disinfection
provided ensuring bathing water quality is protected.
United Utilities upgraded Fleetwood Sewage Treatment Works in 2010. This has improved
the sewerage system on the Fylde coast by reducing storm and emergency overflows to
the sea improving bathing water quality.
During 2012 United Utilities upgraded Blackburn Sewage Treatment Works providing disinfection
to deliver bathing water improvements.
Environment Agency samplers make observations of litter present on the beach at every
visit, this includes assessments of sewage debris, litter and tar. At Blackpool South
for the four year (2020-2023) assessment period where data is available, sewage debris
was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but was observed as being
present on 2% of visits. Litter was assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable
for 2% of visits, with 64% of visits noting the presence of litter. Tarry residue
was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but was observed as being
present on 3% of visits.
The land around Blackpool South is urban with little agricultural land bordering the
seafront. The River Ribble catchment to the south of the bathing water contains large
areas of farmland both around the estuary and further inland. During and after periods
of heavy rainfall excess water may not soak into agricultural land causing run off
into rivers and the sea. The quality of the bathing water may decline as a result
of such events.
Catchment Sensitive Farming, delivered by Natural England in partnership with the
Environment Agency, delivers practical solutions and targeted support to enable farmers
and land managers to take voluntary action to reduce diffuse water pollution from
agriculture to protect water bodies and the environment. Actions include a programme
of educational events for farmers, advice to farmers and land managers, farm visits,
and surveys of the area to identify pollution risks.
Ribble Rivers Trust focussed their Tidal Ribble Project, in collaboration with Unitied
Utilities and Environment Agency, on farms that have benefitted from on-farm interventions
to reduce pollution risk. Interventions such as fencing, roofing slurry stores and
dirty water seperation have been applied and continue to be installed.
A discharge from a pipe close to Blackpool South bathing water was investigated during
2013 and confirmed as a source of pollution. Action has been taken to improve the
quality of this discharge and it is monitored closely during the bathing season.
The ‘Call of Nature’ campaign was run by Morecambe Bay Partnership with the support
of the North West Catchment Partnerships, which resulted in the development of user
friendly materials to educate private sewage treatment plant owners into maintenance
requirement and ways to identify causes for concern. Materials were developed as printed
documents but also available on the web and mobile friendly web page at http://www.callofnature.info/
The bathing water sits on the low lying Fylde coastline in Lancashire. The bathing
water is flanked by urban fringe all along the coastline with agricultural land dominating
further inland. Most surface water in the catchment is diverted away from the bathing
water.
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 England 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 the Environment Agency's role to drive improvement of water quality at bathing
waters that are at risk of failing higher 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.