Scottish Government facing calls to protect Scotland's beaches following e. coli scare at Portobello Beach

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has confirmed the waters at Edinburgh’s Portobello Beach tested positive for e. coli and intestinal enterococci - pointing to human sewage as the source of the pollution.

People were advised not to go into the water on Thursday after Sepa indicated there was an “abnormally high level” of bacteria found in samples. The levels were found to have returned to normal by Friday and the warning was lifted.

Sepa has since confirmed to The Scotsman the test was for e. coli and intestinal enterococci.

Both bacteria are found in human and animal waste, but given Portobello’s urban nature, it is unlikely to be from agricultural waste.

A spokesperson for Sepa said: “As a result of analysis of routine samples, Sepa have indicated a high bacterial result at Portobello Central Bathing Water.

“We are temporarily advising against bathing and paddling as a precautionary measure, due to the potential human health risk.

“Sepa are currently investigating the cause of this high result and if required we will explore any mitigation measures.

“We are currently awaiting the result of further water samples. Signage advising against bathing will remain in place until the water quality returns to a satisfactory level.

“Sepa are liaising closely with the City of Edinburgh Council and Scottish Water, and we will continue to work together to monitor the situation.”

The restrictions over bathing and paddling stretch from Pipe Lane to Joppa Rocks.

Sepa has also activated electronic signs and the City of Edinburgh Council said it has arranged additional signs to be posted around the beach. Sepa’s website indicates the “pollution incident” is expected to last until Monday.

Similar warnings were put in place for six days in July last year due to a waste water pump malfunction.

Trish Mannes, incident director at UKHSA, said: “Symptoms of infections with STEC [Shiga toxin-producing e. coli] include severe and sometimes bloody diarrhoea, stomach cramps, vomiting and fever.

“While diarrhoea and vomiting can have a range of causes, there are simple steps you can take to reduce your risk and risk of infecting others.

“Washing your hands with soap and warm water and using disinfectants to clean surfaces will help stop any further spread of infection.

“If you are unwell with diarrhoea and vomiting, you should not prepare food for others while unwell and avoid visiting people in hospitals or care homes to avoid passing on the infection in these settings.

“Do not return to work, school or nursery until 48 hours after your symptoms have stopped.”

Sewage overflows in Scotland are legal in ‘exceptional circumstances’ such as during periods of unusually heavy rainfall, but in 2022, untreated sewage was discharged at least 14,008 times for 113,230 hours.

This figure does not include Portobello Beach’s outflows, as Scottish Water has confirmed to The Scotsman that it does not monitor the storm outflows at Portobello.

City of Edinburgh council leader Cammy Day said: “The matter is currently under investigation, and we’ll continue to liaise with Sepa and our partners to monitor the situation.”

Chris Murray, the new Labour MP for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, said urgent action is needed to deal with sewage ending up in waters around the city.

Mr Murray wrote to the Scottish Government’s current Net Zero Secretary Gillian Martin, saying more monitoring of sewage outflows is needed.

He said: “You will note that yesterday, the new Labour UK Government announced measures to address sewage and water quality issues in England and Wales.

“Of course, water policy is fully devolved in Scotland; all strategic and financial decisions on water in Scotland for the last 17 years have been taken by your party. Scottish Water is a publicly owned water company, and Sepa is under your ministerial remit.”

He added: “I am willing to share with you any suggestions and ideas my party has to improve water quality.

“I am concerned the Scottish Government is missing in action on this issue.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West, Christine Jardine, said Portobello Beach is “an iconic location” but “once agai”n people are being asked to stay out of the water because of threats to health.

“As Edinburgh gears up for its busiest season, this sends a terrible message,” she said.

“Residents and visitors need more information out of SEPA as to what is leading to these closures and what action is being taken to deliver a long-term solution.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats want a Clean Water Act for Scotland to update the sewage network, proper monitoring to find all the dumping and a complete ban on this filthy practice in protected areas such as bathing waters.”

A spokesperson for Scottish Water said: “The quality of Scotland’s water speaks for itself, and we are very proud of our record in protecting our precious environment and natural resource.

“We work closely with SEPA, partners and stakeholders to maintain those high standards and are investing many millions of pounds in a comprehensive programme of continuous improvement.”

Raw sewage is discharged into rivers and the ocean across the UK, when rainfall causes drainage systems to intentionally overflow. This comes from both public sewage networks and private septic tanks in rural areas.

Statistics from Scottish Water, published in March, show there were 21,660 sewage discharges in 2023 – a ten per cent increase from 19,676 in 2022.

However, only a small fraction of Scottish Water’s sewage outflows are monitored - believed to be around ten per cent - meaning the true scale of Scotland’s sewage pollution is unknown. This is in sharp contrast to England and Wales, where nearly all storm overflows are monitored.

In 2021, Scottish Water unveiled plans to install 1,000 extra sewage monitors across Scotland’s 31,000 mile sewage network.

The publicly-owned company said it is on track to have installed these monitors by the end of 2024, but in December 2023 it admitted it had installed just 272 monitors.