On warm days and sunny evenings, North Dock in Llanelli is a busy hive of activity - usually. Families with young children can often be seen having picnics and paddling in the water, whilst pet-owners walk their dogs around the edge of the dock and swimmers, paddle-boarders, kayakers and triathletes take to the water for training or for leisure.
The car park is often rammed and the wider North Dock area usually full of people enjoying the natural - and free - beauty spot.
But, currently, no-one can enjoy the dock, after Carmarthenshire County Council erected warning signs around its perimeter and called for the public to stay out of the water, following safety concerns. Naturally-occurring algae has taken over the perimeter of the dock in recent weeks and the council fears swallowing the water - or merely swimming in it - could make people very ill.
Whilst locals recognise the importance of avoiding the waters when polluted with algae, they claim the council isn't doing enough to resolve the issue - and that the authority should accept responsibility for the presence of the algae and the consequent need to stop people using the dock after it failed to use the 'flood gates' there to flush-out the algae when it first started to appear on the surface of the water several weeks ago. You can get the latest news about Carmarthenshire by signing up to our newsletter here.
With this in mind, more than 100 concerned local residents of all ages, and members of a range of local sports clubs, met at the dock on the evening of June 14 to peacefully protest the sorry state of the waters. Many held up banners and chanted, "Save Our Dock" during the one-hour meet up, designed to raise awareness of the issue.
Many of those in attendance hailed from the North Dock Dredgers Triathlon Club which trains there and has been particularly affected by the safety issues with the water.
Triathlete and coach of the North Dock Dredgers, Ceri Rees-Coe told WalesOnline at the protest: "We've come here this evening to voice our concerns over the state of our natural waterway, which is the North Dock. It's a very important site, not only for us triathletes but for the local community, we have paddle-boarders, canoers, swimmers, we have the local Bluetits [cold water swimming club] that swim in here and dog-walkers that take their dogs in there.
"Unfortunately, the council has let this go into a state of ruin - so now we have 'No Swimming' signs up, so nobody can use it, we've got so much blue algae in there now, it's been condemned for use," she claimed.
Explaining what she and fellow protesters believed the council should have done to prevent the spread of the algae, Ceri claimed: "Unfortunately, it is something that could have been prevented, we had a similar occurrence last year and the reason for it last year was that there was so much pollutant out in the estuary that this could not be flushed out.
"This year, the estuary has been pretty clean and NRW [Natural Resources Wales] have been out there, apparently, and the water has been fine. There's no excuses, we have massive flush gates which can be opened at high tides, we have massive spring tides here in Llanelli, so again there has been no reasonable excuse why those gates have not been used to flush this out.
"And with the amount of algae that has been in here at the beginning of the year, it would have been no safety concerns for anybody using the estuary [if it had been flushed out from the dock to the estuary] - but now it's got to a level that is probably unsafe to flush this back out to the estuary!"
"So what is the county council going to do about it? We had a statement released today, it's only been released today [due to] peer-pressure by the amount of people showing concern. It's just not good enough - all our voices have fallen on deaf ears. So we'd really like the county council to come up with a plan and sort our waterway out for everybody to use and enjoy."
In a statement released before the protest, a spokesperson for Carmarthenshire County Council said: "Carmarthenshire County Council is keen to re-open North Dock in Llanelli. The primary concern is public safety and the council have put up warning signs around the perimeter of the Dock to warn of the dangers of illness due to naturally occurring algae in the water. The Council is in regular dialogue with Natural Resources Wales on testing and potential solutions for an issue that is not unique to North Dock.
"North Dock and the Loughor Estuary are dynamic, separate, natural environments. Water quality and algae levels are affected by nutrient levels, shade and sun levels, the temperature, tide, and the amount of water circulation.
"Carmarthenshire County Council is working hard to manage the level of water circulation and trialling the manual removal of some algae dynamically and carefully. Beyond this, the council is advised that there are limits to what it can do, mindful of the environmental designations of the Loughor Estuary. Rising temperatures across the world are seeing natural environmental change and we will do all we can to maximise North Docks’ continued summer viability for leisure use."
In a joint statement, Cllr Aled Vaughan Owen, cabinet member for climate change, decarbonisation and sustainability said: "There is not a straightforward solution to this problem as it's important to remember that the whole of the Loughor Estuary is a habitat for local wildlife. Both bodies of water, the North Dock and the Estuary, have complex and dynamic characteristics; the movement and circulation of water between both areas has to be carefully managed.
Cllr Gareth John, cabinet member for regeneration, leisure, culture and tourism added: "We want North Dock to be used for its intended purpose, which is as a safe, inland, recreational body of water and we are working with other agencies to resolve the issue. There is no truth to the rumours of plans to sell the dock. We are committed to developing the area for recreational purposes."
The statement came three weeks after signs were erected around the dock urging people to avoid the waters. At the time, a statement from Carmarthenshire County Council explained: "Warning signs have been erected at North Dock warning of algae blooms. Carmarthenshire County Council is warning members of the public to avoid coming into contact with the water while signs are in place warning of the possibility of contamination through natural causes.
"The algae may cause illness in both humans and animals, so members of the public are advised not to swim in the water; swallow water; avoid contact with the algae; not to allow pets to come into contact with the water and to observe and abide by notices positioned around the dock and water park."
It continued: "Tests carried out at North Dock, Llanelli, by Natural Resources Wales confirmed algae presence. This is despite improvements to the water circulation. The situation will be monitored at North Dock.
"Public Health Wales advises the algae can produce toxins which can cause skin rashes, nausea, vomiting, stomach pains, fever and headache if swallowed. If you have any health concerns, please contact your GP or NHS Direct Wales on 111."
Cllr Aled Vaughan Owen previously added: "The build-up of algae and algae blooms is a natural occurrence which happens from time to time, particularly during periods of hot weather. We are urging people to abide by the warning we have issued as public safety is our main priority. We will continue to monitor the situation and keep members of the public updated."
'It's a very important amenity for the community - we need to see it cleaned up'
"North Dock is usually full of kids playing and swimming, people sitting on the sands, people on paddle boards and kayaks out on the water - it's a hive of activity, rather than what you've got now which is just people standing around! It's a shame to see it like this," said keen paddleboarder Kevin Davies. Kevin, from Carmarthen, loved paddle boarding on the North Dock last summer so was disappointed to hear about its sorry state this year.
"I've been paddle boarding for 10 years, previous to that I kayaked. I came down here a lot last year, it was great - and it was always busy and full of people using it! They [the council] need to do something about it, they've got the gates and there's some big tides during the year to flush it out! They need to sort it!," he claimed
With a triathlon involving a lengthy sea swim, swimming lengths in indoor swimming pools aren't always particularly helpful - but training in an outdoor waterway like the Dock gives triathletes a real insight into the challenges they'll face when taking on a triathlon swim in the sea, they said.
"I'm a cyclist and I'm here to support my friends who are triathletes. This, North Dock, is the main place local people train for the swim part of the triathlon - people come from all around Llanelli and from Swansea to train here, there's not many places that have something like this!" said professional cyclist Ed Laverack. "There's only so much you can do indoors to train for a triathlon, you need something like this [an outdoor waterway] to train properly."
With this in mind, several triathletes are calling for Carmarthenshire County Council to flush away the smelly algae-filled water and clean the dock so people can get back to their training, something that's key to many people's physical and mental health.
Member of North Dock Dredgers, Wayne Evans, criticised the council for prioritising the Loughor estuary over the dock which was used by hundreds of people. "The council haven't opened the gates! About three times a month we get really high tide, about eight to nine metres [so this could flush the algae away quite easily], but the council won't drop the gate as they don't want this [dirty algae water] to go into the estuary - but they didn't seem to worry when people were swimming in sewage in Burry Port last year!," he claimed.
"The water is absolutely disgusting," claimed fellow Dredgers member Simon Rees, who attended the protest with his triathlete sons Elis, aged 12, and 16-year-old Ethan. "The council need to clean it out and get it back usable for everybody."
"It's usually a fantastic resource for the community," added fellow club member John Nicholls. "And I feel sorry for the children who enjoy swimming in the dock - now some of them are going up to Swiss Valley to swim, and it's dangerous there as it's much deeper and it's unmonitored. The children really need to be able to swim in the dock, it's much safer!"
"This is a free facility and it's being wasted," claimed local resident Kelly Jones. "It's so important for a lot of people's wellbeing and their health and fitness."
"It's a very important amenity for the community, at the end of the day, it's not rocket science to clear it out and make it usable!" claimed local resident Robbie Watkins.
Speaking after the protest, Cllr Sean Rees of the Glanymor ward, Llanelli, said: "We are very fortunate here in Llanelli to have such a treasured facility like we have at North Dock. At this time of year, we would usually expect to see our dock in full use and enjoyed by people of all ages. I share their disappointment and frustrations at the current time.
"Temperature variations worldwide are bringing about natural environmental changes with water quality and algae levels being affected by a whole range of factors - nutrient levels, shade and sunlight and the amount of water circulation. North Dock is not an isolated incident, this is happening elsewhere too. I believe areas of the Lake District have had similar experiences as well as Sandy Water Park previously.
"Given the current situation, there is no easy solution. Although there must be a full and regular maintenance plan with consistent monitoring of testing undertaken by Natural Resources Wales (NRW).
"North Dock has huge tourism potential. Up the road will be the new Pentre Awel Development with phase 1 due for completion next year which will include first class indoor sport and leisure facilities. The same focus needs to be applied to equally maximise our outdoor sport and leisure facilities at North Dock.
"A working group is now being formed of representatives from all the sporting clubs who use the dock with a view to working with the council, NRW and other partners so that together we can push for the further improvements our community needs and deserves."
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