Derwent Estuary Programs Beach Watch: New website to help swimmers tackle the river safely

For the first time this summer, people who want to swim in the Derwent River will be able to check the water quality every day, thanks to a new mobile app. Here’s how it works.

Ursula Taylor CEO Derwent Estuary Program. State of the Derwent annual report on water health. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

For the first time this summer, people who want to swim in the Derwent River will be able to check the water quality every day.

In a trial, the Derwent Estuary Program’s Beach Watch will provide daily predictions of the faecal pollution levels on its website.

DEP chief executive Ursula Taylor said the trial aimed to provide the community with additional information when deciding where and when they swim on any given day.

She said the information would include updates about sewage spills and other sudden changes that may impact water quality at our beaches.

“While the forecasting will not replace the need for weekly sampling, it will provide additional, timely, daily advice to complement the sampling results, long-term ratings, and general swimming advice,” Ms Taylor said.

“Every week over summer, water samples are collected from more than 38 sites in the Derwent to test for enterococci, a faecal indicator bacterium,” said Ms Taylor.

“The results demonstrate which beaches are suitable for swimming and where contamination sources may impact water quality.

“We publish the results at the end of every week on our DEP Beach Watch webpage and Facebook site so community members can make informed decisions about where they enjoy recreational water activities.”

The water quality results from 2022-23, she said, had mixed results.

The good news was that Hobart now has only one swimming site out of 19 with a poor long-term water quality rating.

Derwent Estuary Program’s Beach Watch will provide daily predictions of the faecal pollution levels on its website: Picture: Getty Images

Ms Taylor said Kingston Beach north was the only poor site and this was largely attributed to run off from Browns River.

“It will be challenging to address because the run off comes from a lot of sources such as streets and parks and agricultural catchments.”

Ms Taylor was pleased that a site at mid-Howrah moved from poor to fair which was “excellent news for swimmers”.

“There’s been a lot of work done by councils to manager stormwater which was really fantastic.

“Local government authorities and TasWater work together to locate and remedy the issues impacting recreational water sites,” she said.

“We’ve seen over 60 stormwater network issues resolved throughout Clarence and Kingborough in the past year, and we will continue to advocate for this joint management approach.”

Ms Taylor encourages people to follow the DEP for more advice and information about the healthiest beaches across the Derwent.

It is recommended people avoid swimming in the Derwent River after heavy rainfall, as most urban areas experience poor water quality for several days after heavy rain.

Further information about water quality at local beaches and bays is at Beach Watch site: https://www.derwentestuary.org.au/beach-watch/