By Lesley Walsh
A REGULAR visitor to Portavoe beach says the overwhelming stench of sewage forced him to abandon a planned swim during last week’s hot weather, as official figures revealed elevated levels of E. coli in nearby coastal waters.
Francis Daly had travelled from Belfast to enjoy a day at the Donaghadee beauty spot but said he and a friend were driven away after just 30 minutes by what he described as a ‘disgusting’ smell.
The unpleasant experience comes as Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) monitoring data showed E. coli levels at the nearest official bathing water at Donaghadee reached 120 colony-forming units (cfu) per 100ml on June 19.
While that figure was lower than neighbouring Millisle, where levels reached 210 cfu, and Ballywalter, where they stood at 290 cfu, it was significantly higher than Murlough, near Newcastle, where just 10 cfu per 100ml were recorded over the same period.
The highest reading was recorded at Portrush East Strand, where E. coli levels peaked at 600 cfu per 100ml.
The issue was brought into sharp focus by Mr Daly, who said the smell was enough to drive beachgoers away.
“We were late leaving home and I warned my friend who was with me that the beach was likely to be full in such great weather,” said Francis.
“Even though it was a gloriously sunny day, we saw there were only a few people present, only half a dozen.
“The first indication that something was amiss was when I found it easy to park up close to the beach entrance and we didn’t have to wait long to discover why there were so few beach goers.
“Once we were on the beach the smell hit us. It was truly disgusting and after a while you could feel your throat contracting. We lasted half an hour before we were driven off and headed home. The stench of sewage was overwhelming.”
He said the tide was far out at the time and there were no visible signs of sewage to be seen anywhere along the beach.
“But it’s absolutely disgraceful how this has been allowed to happen,” he said. “It’s just so disappointing. This is one of my favourite places to visit in the summer and I won’t be coming back anytime soon if this literally sickening practice of dumping raw sewage in Belfast Lough isn’t dealt with.”
Francis added that if people are put off like he was, there will be a knock-on effect on the local economy.
“That means I won’t be going for lunch or drinks locally either with nearby businesses losing out.
“If I feel this way, then many others will also and that all adds up to a significant hit for the local economy,” he warned.
