The government has rejected all but one application for Designated Bathing Water Status (DBWS) for English rivers. Part of the River Deben at Waldringfield, Suffolk, has moved through to open consultation but proposals for eight other river sites were declined, without explanation, leaving campaigners baffled.
“This is a massive disappointment to those who worked so hard last year to go through the process of applying for bathing water status, and for anyone who cares about river water quality,” said Outdoor Swimmer founder and publisher Simon Griffiths. “It will also discourage the many groups that are mobilising for an application this year.”