Blue Flag Pilot Beaches

In South Africa, municipalities that are planning to enter beaches into the Blue Flag programme, have to implement at least one year of what is called a “pilot phase”.  This pilot phase allows the municipality to put in place the necessary water quality monitoring and start to develop infrastructure (if necessary) and services that a full status Blue Flag beach would require.   The developmental phase of Blue Flag is a valuable time to work out what the particular challenges are likely to be at a beach and allow time for them to be resolved prior to the municipality applying for full Blue Flag status,.   For some beaches, the municipalities managing them take a full two years to go through the pilot phase.   Generally, if a beach has not managed to achieve full Blue Flag status within two years, the management of Blue Flag South Africa recommends that the municipality withdraw the beach from the pilot phase to allow a little more time to put in place the necessary requirements.

The most important aspect of the pilot phase is for the municipality to start testing the bathing water quality at that beach.  This is one of the main reasons why beaches fail to make it into the Blue Flag programme – the water quality at the beach does not meet the international standards set by the Blue Flag programme.

Blue Flag beaches that either lose their full status or if the municipality voluntarily withdraws the Blue Flag, more often than not revert back to pilot status to allow time to regain full Blue Flag status.

For municipalities to apply for a pilot Blue Flag beach, they should contact the National Blue Flag Manager as there is a form that needs to be filled in which then formally starts the pilot phase.  This process usually takes place in mid-year as the pilot phase coincides with the normal Blue Flag seasons which always start on 1 November of each year.   So, a beach has to have registered for a pilot phase by no later than 30 September of each year.

In November 2011, the following beaches moved from pilot beaches to full status Blue Flag beaches: Witsands (near Stilbaai), Umzumbe (Pumula) beach and Lucien beach, near Margate.

There are currently 14 beaches that have applied to run a pilot or developmental stage of Blue Flag:
Hibiscus Coast Municipality - Southport, Port Shepstone
Umhlatuze Municipality - Alkandstrand, Richardsbay
Kouga Municipality - Cape St Francis
Hessequa Municipality - Gouritsmond, Preekstoel, Stillbaai
Mossel Bay Municipality - De Bakke
Buffalo City Municipality - Gonubie, East London
Nelson Mandela Metro Municipality - Wells Estate, Port Elizabeth
Overstrand Municipality – Gansbaai (beach to be confirmed)
Swartberg Municipality - Strandfontein, Matzikama
Umdoni Municipality - Park Rynie Preston, Park Rynie Rocky Beach, Park Rynie
Ndlambe Municipality - Middle Beach, Kenton-on-Sea

In addition, the whale-watching boat of the Dyer Island Conservation Trust, Whale Whisperer, has received a pilot Blue Flag, for the environmentally sensitive manner in which it undertakes its activities.  The Blue Flag programme is also expanding in South Africa to include marinas; with three marinas in Cape Town and one in Port Alfred looking to achieve pilot status in the forthcoming season.