Kolka

17.1°C Water temp · Jul 23

Latvia Coastal 1 - Excellent 17.1°C

Satellite image of KOLKA — Satellite image © Esri

Kolka is a bathing water in Dundaga Municipality on the coast of the Gulf of Riga in Latvia. The bathing water profile was developed to assess water quality and identify factors affecting public health and environmental conditions at this location. The document analyzes microbiological quality, potential pollution sources, and the risk of algal blooms according to European Directive 2006/7/EC requirements.

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Water

Gulf of Riga coastal waters.

Location

Dundaga Municipality, Gulf of Riga coastline, Latvia.

Water Quality

Water quality is classified according to four quality classes: excellent, good, sufficient, and poor. Quality assessment is based on microbiological criteria including Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci. Long-term quality evaluation uses data from four bathing seasons with statistical analysis. For coastal waters, excellent quality requires intestinal enterococci ≤100 CFU/100 ml and E. coli ≤250 CFU/100 ml (95th percentile); good quality requires enterococci ≤200 CFU/100 ml and E. coli ≤500 CFU/100 ml (95th percentile); sufficient quality requires enterococci ≤185 CFU/100 ml and E. coli ≤500 CFU/100 ml (90th percentile).

Risks

Potential risks include fecal contamination from point sources and cyanobacterial blooms. Bathing is prohibited if E. coli exceeds 3000 microorganisms per 100 ml of water and/or intestinal enterococci exceed 500 microorganisms per 100 ml. Bathing is not recommended if E. coli is between 2000–3000 or enterococci between 300–500 per 100 ml. Excessive cyanobacterial proliferation prohibits bathing.