VISITOR numbers to East Lothian’s coastline are unlikely to be affected by warnings to keep out of the water, the county’s provost has said - as the warnings were lifted this morning.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and East Lothian Council urged people not to bathe or paddle at Broadsands and Yellowcraig on Saturday.

That came a matter of weeks after a similar warning was in place at Fisherrow in Musselburgh.

On Wednesday morning, SEPA announced that the latest warning had been lifted after samples taken at the beaches, near Dirleton, showed that water quality had returned to “normal”.

Signs at two popular county beaches are being removed after a warning not to bathe or paddle in the water was liftedSigns at two popular county beaches are being removed after a warning not to bathe or paddle in the water was lifted (Image: East Lothian Council)

Councillor John McMillan, East Lothian Council spokesperson for economic development and tourism, was confident that visitors would still flock to East Lothian – despite the negative headlines.

He said: “While it’s unfortunate that we’ve had to share some warnings from SEPA about bathing water quality in recent weeks, I don’t think this should affect visitor numbers to our beautiful, award-winning beaches.

"I would urge visitors to heed any advice whilst continuing to enjoy their time on East Lothian’s coast and remember to use the handy Visit East Lothian app to check which coastal car parks are less busy.

"Our countryside rangers do a wonderful job caring for our environment and East Lothian is blessed with so much choice of where to spend time along our coast that no one should be put off visiting.

"The fact that there is regular monitoring and informing by the council and partner agencies is reassuring and visitors should be confident that they can enjoy East Lothian’s coastal environment safely at all times.”

READ MORE: Warning signs at Yellowcraig and Broadsands

On Saturday, it was said that the incident was expected to last for three days and authorities were working together to investigate the solution.

The beaches are popular not only with families but also dog walkers and swimmers.

A spokesperson for SEPA said: “Following visual checks of the beach and water sampling by our officers, SEPA have confirmed there is no impact on water quality at Broadsands and Yellowcraig bathing waters and will remove the signs advising against bathing.

“Water sampling will continue to take place throughout the bathing season as part of routine testing.

“We continue to work with our partners to improve Scotland’s water environment and make our summer visits to the beach safer and more enjoyable.”

YELLOWCRAIG AND BROADSANDS

SEPA has confirmed that water quality samples taken yesterday at these locations show no risk to the public. Advice against bathing or paddling has been lifted. Our countryside rangers are removing notices from the sites. https://t.co/nK9TTmwaGa pic.twitter.com/KHuDN8X6jG

East Lothian’s coastline attracts thousands of visitors each year, with the figure having increased in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Visitors not only use accommodation across the county but also enjoy wild camping at popular coastal beauty spots.

Most bathing waters are sampled 18 during the season, with some geographically remote sites sampled 10 times.

Similarly, sites which have consistently demonstrated excellent water quality are tested on only five occasions.

READ MORE: Why we ignored beach warning signs

A spokesperson for SEPA stressed that results at neighbouring beaches, including Gullane, North Berwick East and West, had come back normal.

They said: “The water quality indicators we test for are the bacteria E Coli (EC) and intestinal enterococci (IE).

“We are currently awaiting source analysis results for Yellowcraig and Broadsands.”

Speaking to the Courier on Wednesday, East Lothian Council confirmed that its countryside ranger service was removing warning signs at Yellowcraig and Broadsands.

SEPA says that pollution risks at Yellowcraig generally include from sewerage, while sewer overflows can pose risks at adjacent Broadsands.

Previously, the water quality at Yellowcraig had been deemed ‘sufficient’ by SEPA, while the beach was among eight in the county honoured with Scotland’s Beach Award from Keep Scotland Beautiful in May.