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Beaches on Auckland’s North Shore and in central parts of the city are not safe to swim in because of wastewater and more beaches could be impacted over the long weekend.
The Auckland Council’s Safeswim tool has advised locals to not swim at least 15 beaches after wastewater overflow wasdetected. Anyone willing to take the risk could be swimming in untreated wastewater.
Colour-coded flags on the tool show black “do not swim” flags concentrated around the North Shore and Central Auckland, while red flags advising against swimming are scattered throughout.
St Heliers, Mission Bay, Kohimarama and Okahu Bay are some of the popular beaches with “do not swim” warning attached to them, while Torpedo Bay, St Leonards, Thorne Bay, Milford South, Milford, Wairau Outlet and Castor Bay have the same designation on the North Shore.
The issues seen this week appear to stem from the extreme weather seen across the top of the North Island which caused widespread devastation.
Multiple Auckland beaches, including Mission Bay, are unsafe to swim in according to Safeswim. Photo / Michael Craig
“It is important to note that Auckland’s beaches don’t all respond in the same way to rainfall events,” Holly Foreman, principal of Safeswim at the Auckland Council told the Herald.
“This is due to the rainfall, catchment areas, differences in the land and that each beach is unique.
“Each beach has a different combination of rainfall received, catchment type and flushing rate which means the water-quality effect, and how long it takes to recover will vary.
Milford Beach on the North Shore has a "do not swim" warning placed on it by Safeswim. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
“This is why Safeswim provides beach-specific information.”
Foreman was cautious to say whether these beaches would return to good quality by Monday because of inclement weather forecast for the long weekend.
“Some beaches are already returning to good water quality, and this improvement is expected to continue tomorrow.
“However, with more rain forecast this weekend, conditions may change, so it’s important to check Safeswim before heading to the beach.
“We encourage everyone, in all weather, to check the Safeswim website or download the app for the latest information on water quality and swimming conditions before going for a swim.”
