The Water Quality Guidelines
To determine whether water quality is safe for swimming, Beachwatch uses the National Health and Medical Research Council’s Guidelines for Managing Risks in Recreational Waters (NHMRC, 2008).
NHMRC released new guidelines for recreational water quality in February 2008. These guidelines represent a major revision of the previous NHMRC 1990 guidelines. In particular, the new guidelines include a preventive approach to the management of recreational water through local assessment and management of hazards and of factors that may lead to hazards.
This approach requires information on the local factors that may impact on recreational water quality, as well as numerical information on the level of contaminants. The results can be used to:
• classify beaches, to support informed personal choice
• provide on site guidance to users on the relative safety of the water
• assist in identifying and promoting effective management interventions
• provide a basis for regulatory requirements, and an assessment of compliance with such requirements.
The new guidelines can be downloaded from the National Health and Medical Research Council website.
Beachwatch adopted the NHMRC 2008 guidelines from 1 May 2009, with roll-out to local councils in time for the 2009–2010 summer swimming season.
Page last updated: 26 February 2011
