Fife beach needs ‘urgent action’ as it could be downgraded over sewage issues
Urgent action is needed at Kinghorn beach as it faces being downgraded because of problems with raw sewage.
It faces the prospect of being de-designated as a bathing beach - and it would then be up to Ministers to decide whether that status changes.
The water quality at the popular beach is set to be rated as “poor” for the fifth year in a row, sparking renewed calls for action.
Melanie Ward, MP for Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy, hosted a public meeting at the weekend which was attended by over 120 people, and she branded the current situation as “unacceptable.”
She said: “With more radical action to resolve the problem of human sewage going onto the beach, this could’ve been avoided.” She has called for an immediate commitment from Scottish Water and the Scottish Government to take the “radical action required to ensure Kinghorn remains a safe bathing beach.” The Labour MP added: “Anything less would be an enormous let down to the community and to Fife more widely.
“It is unacceptable that human waste is still being discharged onto the beach. I am deeply concerned that we're now facing the prospect of Kinghorn losing its designation as a swimming beach. This would have very serious consequences for the community. “
A rating of “poor” is the lowest available, and it means less frequent testing and public information on water quality, compounding the challenges the beach faces.
Saturday’s meeting was given the stark warning by a scientist from the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) ahead of the results being announced later this year.
Dr Ruth Stidson said that once de-classified, SEPA had no statutory requirement to sample water, but said it would continue to carry out monitoring.
The meeting also heard from Scottish Water on the work it has done at the beach where pollution has been a major concern for some time. It has carried out extensive work to fix faulty sewage pipes, and investigate possible sources of contamination.
Last summer, at the height of the tourist season, visitors were warned against going into the water after SEPA recorded high microbiological contamination readings at both locations. The issue also affected Burntisland.
SEPA had warned that exposure to the contamination could cause illness, and members of the public were temporarily advised against bathing, paddling, or playing in the sea or streams running into both beaches .
Ms Ward has already invited Alex Fleet, the chief executive of Scottish Water to visit the town to see the problems first hand.