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Liffey swimmimg and disease

  • 22-11-2020 8:20pm
    #1
    Karlos77
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 93 ✭✭


    Hi I am swimming in liffey near sallins kildare ...I've been the last 24 days but am just wondering should i be worried about weils dis ease and other stuff. ..if I was going once a week i think it'd be grand but as going every day now just thinking is it healthy


Comments

  • #2
    fletch
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,423 ✭✭✭fletch


    I was swimming in the Liffey during "lockdown" just below Lucan under the M50 bridge but stopped after a co-swimmer contracted septicemia. Perhaps it's a bit cleaner upstream but I don't think it's worth the risk.


  • #3
    AngryHippie
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,625 ✭✭✭AngryHippie


    The treatment plants upstream do have outlets inevitably to the Liffey.
    During normal operation, the treatment plants improve the outflow quality to the point that it has tight limits on pH, turbidity, BOD etc.

    Page 39 of the https://www.water.ie/docs/Final-NWSMP.pdf has a map of all the wastewater treatment plants in the country.

    Have a gander at how many of them are upstream of you.

    Assuming that they are all functioning correctly 99.99% of the time, that still leaves a reasonable chance that such a busy river is going to have something less than ideal to have land in an orifice and get a chance to replicate.....

    Then there is agricultural runoff to think about.

    Then there is exceptional circumstances like a breakdown or overflow condition flushing out storm drains or causing an uncontrolled release at any stage upstream.

    It presents a much higher risk water body than I'd be happy swimming in.
    Kayaking etc. much better odds.

    That said, I've been in it at Ushers Island before on a mission of mercy.
    Its foul and the combination of injections needed afterwards made me think twice about getting in after anyone selfish enough to hop off a bridge ever again.


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