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Health and Environmental Hygiene

Bathing waters

Last changed: 31/07/2009

Natural bathing waters, unlike man-made swimming pools, are defined as bodies of waters or parts thereof that are part of the natural water cycle—lakes, rivers and the coasts of the North and Baltic Seas.

Bathing is healthy – but there are some risks

The physical exercise of bathing is healthy. This makes it all the more important to bear in mind that bathing may involve health risks.

Accidents
Ranging from small cuts and scrapes to drowning. Accidents are rare, though, at sites with a lifeguard.
Pathogens
Gastroenteric illnesses may occur if certain pathogens have been introduced to waters through faecal matter, which is possible if sewage, rainwater runoff, or overflows from land used for agriculture is introduced. Bathers themselves or birds can be responsible for faecal contamination on site. Infections with the bacterium Vibrio vulnificus (PDF / 285 KB, in German) may occur after contact with seawater, especially during hot summers.
Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae)
Cyanobacteria multiply rapidly in nutrient-rich waters. They produce toxins that can trigger health problems in humans. The Federal Environment Agency has published a Recommendation to protect bathers from cyanobacterial toxins (PDF / 292 KB, in German).

Bathing water quality in Germany

The assessment of bathing water in terms of hygiene parameters has been regulated in Europe since 1976 by the European Bathing Water Directive. There are some 2,000 officially registered bathing waters in Germany. The Laender (federal states) monitor these waters regularly in accordance with the directive.

The Federal Environment Agency compiles the results of water hygiene monitoring in the Laender, checks them for consistency, and forwards them to the European Commission via the Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. The Commission issues a classification of the quality of all bathing waters in Europe, which can be read in English in its Annual report on bathing water quality.

The German federal states (Laender) are responsible for the monitoring of bathing waters. Most of the federal states post up-to-date information on the Internet (in German). In the federal states that do not yet offer central information on the quality of bathing waters on the Internet, such information is provided by the competent public health authorities.

Baden-Württemberg	Hesse	Saxony
Bavaria	Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania	Saxony-Anhalt
Berlin	Lower Saxony	Schleswig-Holstein
Brandenburg	North Rhine-Westphalia	Thuringia
Bremen	Rhineland-Palatinate
Hamburg	Saarland

24 March 2006 marked the entry into force of the amended European Directive concerning the management of bathing water quality. In Germany, the Directive has been transposed by ordinances enacted by the 16 German states. Since the 2008 bathing season, bathing waters have been monitored in accordance with the provisions of the new Directive. Bathing water classification under the new Directive requires data from 4 years, which is why the first classification will take place in 2011.

The Federal Environment Agency has developed a Recommendation for the practical application of the EC Bathing Water Directive and for bathing water assessment during the transitional period before 2011 (PDF / 380 KB, in German).

The Federal Environment Agency is actively contributing to efforts to protect bathers from infection:

Evaluation of risk of infection in bathing waters,
Development of a scientific basis on which to establish microbiological limit values in bathing waters and waste waters (in accordance with the Protection against Infection Act (in German),
Development of concepts for the prevention, detection and avoidance of the spread of waterborne diseases (according to § 40, Protection against Infection Act),
Practical (laboratory) and theoretical support of microbiological hygiene issues in the bathing waters areas with a view to the prevention of disease,
Development and standardisation of methods for the detection and enumeration of pathogens in bathing waters and waste water discharges,
Coordination of development and testing of microbiological detection methods in bathing waters at both national and international levels,
Coordination and verification of federal states’ bathing water data and forwarding of information.

Further information

Issues