Recreational and Amenity Use of Surface Waters: The Public Health Implications

A scheme for assessing health hazards of recreational use of surface waters is presented. It took account of several important components (river classification, proportion of river water which was sewage or trade effluent, proximity to source of pollution, bacteriological quality and environmental health factors). The scoring system was additive and produced a number between 0 and 20, zero representing pristine water conditions and 20 the most polluted and unsuitable. Additional weighting was given to high bacterial counts in the absence of other adverse factors. An example is given of the application of the scheme to the former Albert dock in Liverpool, subsequently used for water-based recreational facilities.