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2023 Bathing Water Profile for Llangrannog

  • Measuring just over 100 metres in width, with interbedded mudstone and sandstone cliffs on either side, the sandy, sheltered beach has a distinctive large rock on the shore’s edge. The coastal waters and coastal belt are designated as the Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation and the Aberarth Cerreg Wylan Site of Special Scientific Interest, confirming the high conservation status of the area. A small unnamed stream and the Nant Hawen enter the sea at Llangrannog Bay, both of which drain agricultural land. The water quality sample point is located to the centre of the beach.
  • Ceredigion
  • Natural Resources Wales continues to work with Ceredigion County Council and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water to establish sources of pollution around the beach. This work has recently targeted the agricultural sector, providing advice and guidance on best farming practices. Inspections are carried out by Natural Resources Wales in partnership with the local authority and the water company. These are carried out pre-season (before the 15th of May) and mid-season if required (during the bathing water season).
  • Llangrannog is potentially impacted by numerous storm, emergency and surface water outfalls, both along the foreshore and within the main freshwater inputs particularly during heavy rainfall. Within the catchment of Llangrannog bathing water, there are numerous storm, emergency and surface water outfalls that discharge to the Nant Hawen. These protect domestic properties in Llangrannog from being flooded by sewage, during heavy rainfall. Sewer overflows operating during and following periods of heavy rain can result in a deterioration in the quality of the water in the river and at Llangrannog bathing water. In recent years, telemetry equipment has been installed in most of the overflows by the water company. This technology has allowed Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water to respond to warnings of blockages in the sewage system and has reduced the number of actual and potential overflows. DCWW have recently rolled out the new storm overflow map which provides near real-time information about Dwr Cymru’s storm overflow activity, as indicated by the event duration monitors. The map can be used to see if monitors indicate if a storm overflow is currently operating (as designed to do during or after heavy rainfall) and the date/time of the last recorded activity of operation. A project known as Event Duration Monitoring (EDM) was undertaken to install telemetry on Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) within 2km of a bathing water by 2020 so that Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) know when the CSOs are operating and can work to reduce spills. Two CSOs near Llangrannog were included in this project.
  • Natural Resources Wales has developed a good working relationship with Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water and liaises regularly to identify problems that could affect bathing water quality.
  • Natural Resources Wales and Ceredigion County Council have worked together to improve the bathing water quality at Llangrannog for a number of years.
  • This bathing water does not have a history of large amounts of seaweed (macroalgae).
  • Wrongly connected waste water pipes can affect the water quality of rivers and the sea. Natural Resources Wales has worked with Ceredigion County Council and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water to trace the sources of pollution from household toilet and utility misconnections, to the private and public surface water system that discharges into Llangrannog. 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.
  • None known at present.
  • Phytoplankton (microscopic algae) naturally increase in number at certain times of the year. This process is known as a phytoplankton bloom. These algal blooms can occur at any beach during the bathing season and are usually noticeable by a surface scum. This beach does not have a history of such blooms.
  • This bathing water is subject to short term pollution. Short term pollution is caused when heavy rainfall washes faecal material into the sea from livestock, sewage and urban drainage via rivers and streams. At this site the risk of encountering reduced water quality increases after rainfall and typically returns to normal after 1-3 days. Natural Resources Wales makes daily pollution risk forecasts based on rainfall patterns and will issue a pollution risk warning if heavy rainfall occurs to enable bathers to avoid periods of increased risk. Natural Resources Wales works to reduce the sources of this pollution through pollution prevention measures, work with agriculture and water companies. At Llangrannog there were a total of 23 warnings of a pollution risk forecast during the 2024 bathing water season, with 2 samples being taken on a day that coincided with these warnings.
  • 2023 Bathing Water Profile for Llangrannog
  • Streams are typically affected by sewage or industrial run off from further up the catchment. Llangrannog is influenced by a small unnamed stream and the larger river, the Nant Hawen that flows directly onto the bathing water. High flows in streams, rivers and sewers due to heavy rainfall affects water quality in the bay.
  • Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water have recently completed a significant investment programme and provided a main drainage system to residential properties and a school at Pontgarreg. Llangrannog Sewage Treatment Works discharges to the west side of the beach, below the mean low water mark. Disinfection through membrane filtration treatment of the effluent, protects the bathing water quality. Sewage treatment works outfalls are inspected as part of the pre-season bathing water programme.
  • 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 Llangrannog, data are available for the four year assessment period from 2021-2024. Sewage debris was not observed at this bathing water. Animal faeces was not noted at this site. Trace amounts of litter were observed at the bathing water on between ten and twenty per cent of occasions. Oil and tarry residues were not noted at this site.
  • Pollution prevention visits have been undertaken by Natural Resources Wales at agricultural premises throughout the Hoffnant catchment. As part of this process, Natural Resources Wales assess slurry and manure storage, and potential sources of contamination from farm yards which could adversely impact bathing waters. Advice and guidance has been given to farm owners about responsibly managing nutrients, and where needed, improvements are identified and implemented through voluntary and regulatory means.
  • Natural Resources Wales continues to work with private owners to address potential pollution sources to the bathing water. This work involves where necessary, advisory mail drops, dye tracing, misconnection surveys and face to face meetings. Poorly maintained private sewage treatment facilities could be a source of pollution, therefore the registration of all qualifying private sewage systems in Wales was required by 30 June 2012. The primary aim of this exercise is to provide increased protection for the environment and sensitive features such as bathing water beaches. Where discharges from properties are identified in the catchment that are not on mains sewerage, Natural Resources Wales will endeavour to ensure registration has been made, unless already a permitted discharge.
  • The natural drainage (hydrological) catchment surrounding the bathing water is predominantly agricultural with some holiday homes and residential properties situated in the valley behind the bay. The Nant Hawen is the main river that discharges onto the beach. Its catchment drains both a large agricultural area and the villages of Llangrannog and Pontgarreg.
  • Llangrannog

  • 2023 38680:1

    • 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.
    • Discharges from sewage treatment works have improved substantially in Wales since the 1980s.

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