Waveney's beaches hit highest standards
Published on 15th May 2012
Beaches at Lowestoft North and South of Claremont Pier have both retained Blue Flags for the 2012 season, recognising their high standards of water quality, facilities and safety.
An internationally recognised symbol of a clean and well-managed beach, the Blue Flag campaign is an environmental initiative to recognise beaches that promote positive coastal environmental care and first class management standards. FEE European Blue Flag Awards recognise beaches, throughout Europe, which fulfil strict criteria relating to both the water quality, management and the surrounding beach area.
For a beach to be considered, it must have attained the guideline standard of the Bathing Water Directive before being assessed for various other criteria, and it must also demonstrate it provides and manages a range of facilities and contributes to public awareness of environmental issues.
Further success has also been achieved this week with three further beaches - Southwold Pier, Southwold Denes and Kessingland - winning Keep Britain Tidy Quality Coast Awards for the 2012 season. The Quality Coast Award was launched in 2007 and recognises the diversity and quality of England's coastline, with all beaches being recognised for providing the very best standards for their visitors.
Cllr Bruce Provan, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Tourism and Economic Development said: "These latest awards are fantastic news for tourism on the Suffolk Coast and highlight once again why this is a great place to visit and have fun. These awards don't appear out of thin air and it is thanks to the hard work of the partnership between Waveney Norse, Sentinel Leisure Trust and Waveney District Council in keeping our beaches both clean and safe for everyone."
Accolades such as Blue Flag and Quality Coast Awards are of great benefit to the local tourism industry. The Sunrise Coast Visitor Survey identified that 69% of visitors to the area had to or intended to visit our beaches during their stay, highlighting just how important they are to Waveney's £255 million tourism economy.
