Pollution? You can still paddle in Belle Greve

THE water at Belle Greve beach is fine despite the leak in the long sea outfall, says Environmental Health. But Surfers Against Sewage yesterday branded plans to repair the outfall a temporary solution to a big problem and wants full waste treatment to be an election issue.

Water at the shoreline has been monitored since the leak was discovered in October.

John Cook, director of environmental health and pollution regulation, said there had been no difference in samples taken between October and now and those taken during the same period a year ago.

'All samples taken during both periods satisfied the mandatory EU bathing water standards and the majority, but not all, satisfied the guideline standards,' he said.

Mr Cook was not aware of any sampling in the area of the leak, but said: 'It can be anticipated that there will inevitably be an increase in sewage contamination in the immediate area.'

SAS campaigns director Richard Hardy said work to repair the leak merely diverted attention from the much larger issue of how the island dealt with its waste.

'Is it acceptable in Guernsey to dump raw sewage into the sea?' he said.

'Public Services wants to keep spending money patching up a system that desperately needs updating.

'We came very close to seeing Guernsey embrace full sewage treatment in October. I think it needs to be an election issue.

'We hope the election will be the time to get new politicians in who want to deal with the issue and get it at the forefront of the environmental agenda,' he said.

He added that Public Services needed to look at the system as a whole instead of trying to carry out makeshift repairs on the old pipes.

'Dumping tons of concrete onto the pipes is not the answer,' he said.

'Public Services needs to provide clean, safe, recreational water for everyone. It needs investment and unless it gets it, you are just going to continue having problems like this.'

No one from Public Services was available for comment.