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Beach Water Quality and Sand at All Eight Busan Beaches Meet Environmental Standards

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Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment announced that it conducted pre-opening inspections of water quality and beach sand at eight beaches across Busan ahead of the peak summer vacation season, with all beaches found to be in compliance.

○ The water quality survey measured concentrations of enterococci (water quality standard: 100 MPN/100 mL or less) and Escherichia coli (water quality standard: 500 MPN/100 mL or less), which serve as indicator bacteria for waterborne diseases.

• ●MPN (Most Probable Number) is a statistical method used to estimate the number of pathogenic microorganisms (bacteria) contained in a 100 mL water sample by calculating the most probable concentration.

○ The beach sand survey measured concentrations of five hazardous heavy metals: cadmium, arsenic, lead, mercury, and hexavalent chromium.

The survey found that both beach water quality and beach sand satisfied the environmental standards set forth in the Act on the Use and Management of Beaches.

○ At Haeundae Beach and Songjeong Beach, which are scheduled to open on June 26, enterococci ranged from 0 to 5 MPN/100 mL and Escherichia coli ranged from 0 to 20 MPN/100 mL, fully complying with the water quality standards.

○ At Dadaepo Beach (East), Dadaepo Beach (West), Songdo Beach, Gwangalli Beach, Ilgwang Beach, and Imrang Beach, all scheduled to open on July 1, enterococci ranged from 0 to 16 MPN/100 mL and Escherichia coli ranged from 0 to 292 MPN/100 mL. All eight beaches in Busan met the applicable water quality standards.

○ In the beach sand survey, cadmium was detected at 0.33–1.37 mg/kg, arsenic at 2.89–5.30 mg/kg, and lead at 3.9–14.7 mg/kg, all well below the environmental safety management standards for beach sand. Mercury and hexavalent chromium were not detected at any of the eight beaches.

The survey results will be provided to Busan Metropolitan City and the relevant district offices. They are also available through the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment Environmental Information website (https://busan.go.kr/ihe) and the Marine Environmental Information Portal (https://www.meis.go.kr).

○ For further information, please contact the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment at +82-51-309-2784.

Following this survey, the Institute will continue to conduct regular water quality monitoring at all eight beaches in Busan throughout the beach season to help ensure safe swimming conditions for visitors.

Lee Yong-joo, Director of the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment, stated, “To ensure the safety of beachgoers during the summer season, we will continue to conduct regular water quality monitoring throughout the operating period of the beaches. Because pollutants from surrounding areas may flow into the sea during periods of frequent rainfall, water quality can temporarily deteriorate. We therefore advise the public to refrain from swimming immediately after heavy rain.”