Bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland
Ireland: Bathing sites with excellent water quality was 80.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland, 1992–2025
Source: European Environment Agency (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland stood at 80.0%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland peaked at 100.0% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 44.4%, in 2008.
That places Ireland 14th out of 27 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 80.0% | — |
| 1993 | 100.0% | +25.0% |
| 1994 | 88.9% | -11.1% |
| 1995 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 100.0% | +12.5% |
| 2003 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 88.9% | -11.1% |
| 2005 | 77.8% | -12.5% |
| 2006 | 77.8% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 66.7% | -14.3% |
| 2008 | 44.4% | -33.3% |
| 2009 | 66.7% | +50.0% |
| 2010 | 55.6% | -16.7% |
| 2011 | 66.7% | +20.0% |
| 2012 | 77.8% | +16.7% |
| 2013 | 77.8% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 88.9% | +14.3% |
| 2015 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 80.0% | -10.0% |
| 2025 | 80.0% | +0.0% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 80.0% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 80.0%, 1.0× the median. (27 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 80.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 80.4%, 100% of the median. (26 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 89.2% | 80.0% | 100.0% | 8 |
| 2000s | 80.0% | 44.4% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 81.1% | 55.6% | 88.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 85.9% | 80.0% | 88.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More environment data for Ireland
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.51 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.17 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.412 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.89 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.13 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -0.0083 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland?
- Bathing sites with excellent water quality in Ireland was 80.0% in 2025, according to European Environment Agency (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest bathing sites with excellent water quality recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1993.
- What is the lowest bathing sites with excellent water quality recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 44.4% in 2008.
- How does Ireland rank for bathing sites with excellent water quality?
- Ireland ranks 14th out of 27 countries with data for 2025.
- Is bathing sites with excellent water quality rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from European Environment Agency (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Bathing sites with excellent water quality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of bathing water sites in lakes or rivers that are of excellent quality. This means contamination levels of certain bacteria are below a strict threshold.