River Wye site granted bathing status in Welsh government U-turn

Writer and journalist Oliver Bullough, part of the Friends of the River Wye campaign group, had spearheaded efforts to secure the designation from Welsh government.

“The motivation is not to encourage more people to swim, lots of people swim there already,” he explained.

“The River Wye has seen a sharp decline in water quality owing to pollution, particularly from agriculture but also from sewage over the last 20 or so years,” he said.

“Governments on both sides of the border have failed to do their duty in protecting the river and by applying for bathing status we can oblige them to test the water quality and take steps to improve it if it’s inadequate.”

“It’s the only tool we have to do that so I’m delighted that we have managed to persuade the government in Cardiff to change their mind – they have now come to the right decision,” he said.

Mr Bullough hoped the site would be “the first of many” in Wales.

“I hope it will be seen as a real first step in a long journey to clean up our rivers.”