Dear fellow swimmers

I have a dilemma. Like many of you, I’m disgusted about the amount of sewage in our waterways. I’m therefore delighted that cleaning up our water has become a hot political issue. Government action is needed, and voter sentiment drives political change. Sewage pollution is wrong for many reasons including stopping people from swimming. In my Twitter feed I see ever more comments like: “Swimming in sewage is not for me I’m afraid.” Fair enough. Nobody wants to swim into a floater. But judging by some people’s reactions, you might think I was suggesting they swim in open sewers. In reality, our water quality is often excellent and your risk of infection is low.

Video footage of brown sewage pouring into a blue ocean is great for raising public awareness and anger. It’s not so good for outdoor swimming. The dilemma is: how do we maintain political pressure about sewage pollution and, at the same time, reassure people that it’s (usually) fine to swim? I can hear the critics saying, you can’t have it both ways. It’s either OK to swim, so stop complaining, or it’s not, so stop swimming.

The reality is more nuanced. First, us swimmers, armed with data, common sense and a nose, can assess risks and choose when and where we enter the water. Fish and aquatic plants don’t have that luxury. Reducing sewage pollution is not only about protecting swimmers. Second, although swimmers can pick when we enter the water, why should we have to worry about this? Our knowledge and data isn’t perfect, sewage spills are sometimes unreported.

I don’t know how to resolve this. Swimming outdoors always carries a risk. For most people, the benefits of swimming outweigh the risks. Please don’t let the sewage scandal put you off swimming and missing out on all its benefits. Trust your instincts and judgement to choose safer times and places to swim. Stay alert, keep campaigning for better water quality, and keep swimming.

Unfortunately, sewage is not the only threat to outdoor swimming. Exaggerated safety worries look like they might bring down the popular Jubilee River Swim. We also know some of you are concerned that a pike might bite your toes (spoiler alert: it’s unlikely).

Have a great weekend!

Simon Griffiths
Founder & Publisher

P.s. Outdoor Swimmer Extra just got better. It now includes access to a digital flipbook version of Outdoor Swimmer magazine. Find out more.