Zambujeira do Mar beach, in Odemira, district of Beja, bathing is prohibited, due to microbiological contamination of water, according to the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) and the city council.
This Alentejo beach is on the list of recommended and prohibited places for bathing published on the APA website and consulted today by the Lusa agency.
No document, the APA stated that the water on Zambujeira do Mar beach has been closed to swimming since Tuesday, due to microbiological contamination.
Also in a statement published on its website, also consulted today by Lusa, the Odemira Chamber indicated that it was aware of the “perception of bad smell and inconsistent tones in the watercourse”.
“The preliminary reading of the harvest scheduled for Monday confirmed the contamination, determining, so, bathing is not recommended”, forward.
The municipality highlighted that it was informed by the company Águas Públicas do Alentejo (Owned) that, on Monday, “a deficiency in the aerators and recirculation pumps of the WWTP had been diagnosed [Wastewater Treatment Plant]".
"However, the same entity emphasizes that it is its understanding that such situations did not have a significant impact”, He stressed.
According to the municipality, at an unrelated event, occurred, on Tuesday, a rupture in the irrigation system of the Mira Hydroagricultural Development, upstream of the WWTP, which “significantly increased the flow of the watercourse that flows onto the beach and caused strong dragging on the riverbed”.
“From what was possible to ascertain, and despite the coincidence of events, the water from this break does not pose a danger to public health, nor should it contaminate the counter-analyses that the chamber is still awaiting in order to be, as fast as possible, restore normality to Zambujeira do Mar beach”, said.
This monitoring, He explained the local authority, “includes the investigation of possible undue discharges, in collecting samples at tributary points to the water line and in the water bed, upstream and downstream of the WWTP that serves the population”.
“This is a procedure that is ongoing and will determine the concrete actions to be developed in the short term., medium and long term”, he added.
