"Many blue flag beaches were covered in waste, and Brighton was among the worst-hit, Lib Dem report shows".

"England’s most celebrated beaches faced 8,500 hours of sewage dumping last year, new figures show.

Many beaches with blue flag status– an international mark of recognition that a beach is deemed safe and has good water quality – were found to have been covered in waste over the last 12 months.

Among the worst-hit were Brighton beach in Sussex, where Southern Water discharged sewage 45 times last year, over a total of more than 107 hours. Blackpool Sands beach in Devon had 63 sewage spills over a total of 1,014 hours. And Meadfoot beach in Torquay, Devon, faced 79 instances of sewage dumping, lasting for 946 hours.

The figures come from an analysis of Environment Agency data done by the Liberal Democrats."

Helena Horton reports for the Guardian April 3, 2023. [2]