ASSESSING THE HEALTH RISKS OF SEA BATHING

This paper considers the scientific basis of epidemiological research into marine bathing water quality in the UK, and places it in the context of policy development for the water industry and regulatory agencies in Europe. Results of the latest UK studies employing internationally recognized methods are reviewed, together with the output of other studies including those based on the use of healthy adult volunteers. It is concluded that methods based on captive volunteer populations may have merit in inland waters used by defined groups of recreational users. However, there is no epidemiologically defensible way of linking the output of such methods to the results of more conventional techniques for assessing risks in marine recreational waters. This observation may have implications for the formulation of new standards for bathing water quality in Europe.