The vast majority of bathing waters in Europe remain clean and safe for health, although persistent problems still affect certain sites, including rivers, according to a report published on Tuesday 16 June by the European Environment Agency (EEA).
In 2025, 85% of the 22,000 bathing sites recorded in the EU displayed excellent quality, while 96% complied with at least the minimum European standards, the Agency states (see EUROPE 13418/20). By contrast, 1.5% of sites were still classified as being of poor quality, a sign that the management measures put in place there are not yet sufficient.
Despite progress, several countries still record a notable proportion of poor-quality sites, including France, the Netherlands and Estonia. The highest share of bathing waters of excellent quality is found in Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Greece (95%).
Coastal areas continue to show better results than inland waters: 88% of sites at sea or on the coast obtained the highest classification, compared with 78% for lakes and rivers. Rivers remain problematic, with only 47% of river sites reaching an excellent level.
The improvement observed over recent decades is mainly due to the reduction in discharges of untreated or insufficiently treated wastewater.
The checks concern the presence of bacteria indicating faecal pollution, such as Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci. By contrast, chemical pollutants such as pesticides or pharmaceutical residues are not taken into account in this monitoring.
Link to the report: https://aeur.eu/f/md3 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)