Bathing water legislation must be considered in the proposed dog ban on Port Erin beach, commissioners clerk Jason Roberts says.

The controversial ban is one of several bylaws being amended by the local authority.

Draft bylaws are being drawn up by the Department of Infrastructure and will go for public consultation.

Dogs are currently banned from the beach in Port Erin from 10am to 7pm from May to September but the authority plans to make it a 24-hour ban during those months.

At a recent authority meeting, Mr Roberts said a letter about bathing water quality should be part of the consideration.

Simon Renton, environmental protection unit manager at the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture, wrote asking for the authority’s input on the department’s proposal to enable adoption by the government of the 2006 EU Bathing Water Directive standards.

In May 2018 Tynwald agreed ’that the existing bathing water quality standards are inadequate. Provision must be made to adopt the standards included in the ... directive as an objective as supported by Tynwald in March 2016 and that necessarily implementation work should be completed.’

The directive states that ’a bathing water is one where a large number of people are expected to bathe and a permanent bathing water prohibition, or permanent advice against bathing, has not been issued.

’Local authorities will have an important and significant role to play in achieving bathing water quality standards as effective management of beaches will be essential.’

Following the IRIS scheme, only Broadway in Douglas and both Fenella and Peel beaches failed in 2018 to meet directive requirement for ’sufficient’ (data from 2015 to 2018).

Mr Renton wrote: ’It is the intention of the department to develop a bathing water profile and put plans in place to monitor and protect the bathing water.

’The department recognises the need to seek the initial views of all local authorities during the development of these proposals and for continuing close liaison and involvement thereafter.’

Mr Roberts said: ’There are aspects that overlap with the dog ban.’

â?¢ Ramsey Commissioners are broadly supportive of DEFA’s moves to establish beaches around the island that meet EU bathing water standards.

In response to a consultation from the department, they have recommended both north and south beaches for designation as bathing beaches.

Sea water testing around the island takes place annually between May and September, when water is tested for cleanliness according to EU standards. In the most recent survey, sea water around Ramsey came out joint top, scoring 100% in tests for excellent water quality.

The other area to score 100% was Derbyhaven.