Wednesday 1 June 2022 01:10 AM Over half of swimmers avoid rivers or seas amid health concerns over dumping of ... trends now
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The majority of Britons fear swimming in seas or rivers because they are worried about pollution.
Environmental charity Surfers Against Sewage found that 52 per cent of people were scared of swimming in wild British waters.
Nearly a quarter said they avoided them entirely due to fears water companies were dumping raw sewage there.
Chief executive Hugo Tagholm said the water industry needed to ‘cut this c**p’ so swimmers can ‘enjoy the experience’.
Nearly one in four Britons (24 per cent) say they are avoiding swimming in UK waters due to the sewage scandal - water companies allowing sewage to flow into rivers and seas rather than treating it.
More than half of Britons avoid swimming in the nation's seas or rivers due to health concerns over dumping of waste, according to a survey by Surfers Against Sewage. Pictured: Paddleboarders in Swansea Bay, Wales
An overwhelming majority (74 per cent) of the public agree that sewage pollution is a real issue in UK waters, with almost half (45 per cent) having become aware in the last year of the risks associated with swimming in UK waters.
The survey found a fifth of Britons (21 per cent) said they or someone they know has fallen ill after swimming in UK rivers and seas, most notably with an ear infection (10 per cent) or diarrhoea (9 per cent).
The younger generation (aged between 18-34) are most at risk as the most likely age group to brave the UK’s open water, with two fifths having tried wild swimming or water sports.
Almost a third (31 per cent) of Brits believe
