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The Environmental Protection Department today (September 19) released the latest grading of water quality at 33 beaches.
24 beaches were rated Good (Grade 1) and nine were rated Fair (Grade 2).
Grade 1 beaches are:
Cafeteria Old Beach Middle Bay Beach
Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach Repulse Bay Beach
Chung Hom Kok Beach Pui O Beach
Clear Water Bay First Beach Shek O Beach
Deep Water Bay Beach Silverstrand Beach
Discovery Bay* South Bay Beach
Hap Mun Bay Beach St. Stephen's Beach
Hung Shing Yeh Beach Stanley Main Beach
Kiu Tsui Beach Tong Fuk Beach
Kwun Yam Beach Trio Beach
Lo So Shing Beach Turtle Cove Beach
Lower Cheung Sha Beach Upper Cheung Sha Beach
Grade 2 beaches are:
Big Wave Bay Beach Golden Beach
Butterfly Beach Kadoorie Beach
Cafeteria New Beach Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach
Castle Peak Beach Silver Mine Bay Beach
Clear Water Bay Second Beach
The beach with an asterisk is a non-gazetted beach. All gazetted beaches are equipped with shark nets.
Beach grades are published weekly before the weekend. The information may also be obtained from the department's website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666.
Compared with the grading released last week, there was no change in the grading for these beaches.
Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades according to the level of E. coli in the water.
Grades are calculated on the basis of the geometric mean of the E. coli counts on the five most recent sampling occasions.
Grade 4 is assigned to beaches whose last E. coli reading exceeded a threshold figure, irrespective of the geometric mean. Swimmers are advised to avoid these beaches until the water quality improves.
Seven gazetted beaches -- Anglers' Beach, Approach Beach, Casam Beach, Gemini Beaches, Hoi Mei Wan Beach, Lido Beach and Ting Kau Beach -- are closed to swimmers year round because of poor water quality.
People are advised not to swim at the closed beaches.
The spokesman warned that many beaches were likely to be more polluted than their grades suggested during and after periods of heavy rain. Bathers should avoid swimming at beaches for up to three days after a storm or heavy rainfall.
Ends/Friday, September 19, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:01
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