Garda Lake Achieves Blue Flag Status with Improved Water Quality

The European Blue Flag could ideally be flown today along the entire Garda Lake Riviera, from Riva to Sirmione, from Malcesine to Gardone. Not just on the Scaligero peninsula, which last May was awarded this prestigious European recognition.

Bathing conditions and recent results

It is just yesterday that the latest report on beach cleanliness — fifty-two on the Brescia coast, over one hundred including the remaining shores — which are normally published every fifteen days by the Servizio di Igiene Pubblica dell’Azienda Sanitaria Italiana (ASI), confirmed the exceptional health status of our Riviera.

All 52 beaches, from Sirmione to Limone, have been deemed suitable for bathing. And note, this is not in May, but on Ferragosto (August 15th). An extraordinary fact, confirming the positive trend that began last year when, also in August, only a couple of beaches were off-limits. And that was understandable.

This year, instead, Garda has chosen to present itself at the peak of the season in excellent health conditions. But there is more. An encouraging piece of data comes from two towns, among the most populated and significant: Desenzano and Salò.

Protection initiatives and achieved results

Both towns had previously experienced some issues: the Desenzanino and the Spiaggia d’Oro in Desenzano, the Cimitero area, and the zone behind the hospital in Salò were invariably recorded in the “black list.” However, this year, the news that the two municipalities, but especially the swimmers, have been awaiting for decades, has come to fruition: even the four “notorious” beaches are now fully suitable for bathing.

But how was this achieved? The reasons are multiple. First of all, recall the passionate battles fought by environmentalists, then a greater sensitivity towards the protection of nature and the environment by the public, and finally the significant intervention strategies implemented by the Azienda Garda Uno and the same riva towns, which have upgraded and repaired almost the entire sewage network and started more systematic monitoring of their internal watercourses.

This was probably the most effective move. It was actually the torrents, commonly called “ganfi” in the area, that often faced blame as primary culprits for discharges into the lake. Industrial effluents, from artisanal laboratories, pig farms, emptying tanks or boilers.

Additionally, both municipalities and Garda Uno have recently equipped themselves with numerous mobile units, including boats, to intervene quickly in removing any waste or debris. Two waste-collecting boats are ready to respond whenever an incident occurs.

The impression is therefore that Lake Garda is about to be completely remediated. A dream that started in 1975 with the Garda Community, led by Aventino Frau. After a quarter of a century, perhaps the project has reached completion.