In a statement, the environmental association explains that these concerns result from a comparison between the results of the water quality of Portuguese beaches during this bathing season and last year.

“There are currently 664 bathing waters whose monitoring is reported, with a limited number of beaches revealing problems, but more significantly than in the last bathing season”, indicates Zero.

The environmental association states that since the beginning of the bathing season (1 May) bathing has been advised against or prohibited on 46 beaches, 17 more than in the same period last year.

“In these bathing areas, the analyses exceeded the limits technically established at the national level in relation to at least one of the two microbiological parameters that are assessed (Escherichia coli and intestinal Enterococci)”.

Also since the start of the bathing season, 41 beaches have been closed, 13 more than in 2023, the majority due to “poor quality”, with 15 being coastal and 26 inland.

The bathing waters that presented the highest number of situations of water unsuitable for bathing were Matosinhos, with three situations of advice against or prohibition of bathing, and Parede (Cascais), Camilo (Lagos), Bitetos (Marco de Canavezes), Vieira (Marinha Grande), Molhe Leste (Peniche) and Azenhas do Mar (Sintra), each of them with two situations of advice against or prohibition of bathing.

The municipality of Cascais, in the district of Lisbon, is the one that registered the largest number of beaches affected by “inappropriate quality or closures” (six beaches).

Zero also regrets the existence of “failures in the information provided on the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) website”, since “the reasons for the closure of bathing areas and the procedures by the Regional Health Delegates are not always properly explained”.

“There are 92 bathing waters without any test results available (14% of the total bathing waters), and practically all of the beaches are in the Autonomous Region of the Azores. For example, the APA page dedicated to communicating advice against and bans on bathing (https://apambiente.pt/apa/desaconselhamentos-e-interdicoes-da-pratica-balnear) represents an improvement in the communication effort, but is not entirely consistent with the information from the Water Resources Information System”.

Therefore, Zero defends the need to “investigate the causes” and, “above all, prevent contamination” on inland beaches that were proportionally more affected.

On the positive side, the environmental association highlights the fact that “none of the “Zero Pollution Beaches” presented “significant water quality problems”.