Do not swim at Ballinskelligs: sewage release closes the beach for three days

Kerry County Council has issued a bathing prohibition notice at Ballinskelligs beach, after an uncontrolled release of sewage into the stream that enters the sea at the north end of the beach. The council is asking people not to swim there, saying the water may cause illness.

The notice went up on Monday 17 August and the council expects it to last about three days, so it should lift around Thursday 20 August. That is an expectation rather than a promise: prohibition notices are lifted on water samples coming back clean, not on a calendar, so check before you get in.

The practical read for anyone driving the Ring this week: Ballinskelligs is one of the better swimming beaches on the western side of the loop, and the notice covers swimming, not the beach itself. Walking the strand, the view across to the abbey and the castle, and Ballinskelligs as a stop are all unaffected. If a swim was the point of the detour, Derrynane is about twenty five minutes further along the coast and is not affected.

Councillor Norma Moriarty, who raised it, says Uisce Eireann has confirmed the cause and that it points to the need to upgrade the area's sewerage system.