According to the European Environment Agency (EEA), 96% of the swimming waters across the European Union met the required quality standards in 2024, with 85% rated as “excellent” and just 1.5% classified as “poor”. The overall quality remained stable compared to the previous year, as announced by the EEA today.

Out of nearly 22,000 bathing sites assessed in 2024 across the EU, as well as in Albania and Switzerland, water quality was categorized as “excellent,” “good,” “sufficient,” or “poor.” These classifications were based on detected levels of bacteria, primarily from pollution linked to sewage and livestock farming.

Cyprus emerged as the top performer, with an impressive 99.2% of its bathing waters rated as “excellent”. Following Cyprus were:

• Bulgaria at 97.9%

• Greece at 97%

• Austria at 95.8%

• Croatia at 95.2%

At the lower end of the scale, Albania recorded only 16% of sites as “excellent,” marking a 25-point drop from last year. Poland showed a slight improvement with 58.1%, up from 2023.

In general, coastal waters outperformed inland waters (such as rivers and lakes) in quality, thanks to more frequent water renewal and natural self-purification processes. In contrast, rivers and lakes are more vulnerable to pollution, especially due to heavy rainfall or summer drought, which can drastically affect water quality.

In 2023, 321 bathing sites across the EU were rated as “poor.” Encouragingly, 67 of these sites improved compared to the previous year.

For areas where bathing waters are classified as “poor,” national authorities are required to ban swimming, take steps to reduce pollution, and eliminate health risks to the public.