Seafront traders thrown into “turmoil” by do-not-swim warnings on two Kent beaches fear they could remain in place for years.

The water at Littlestone and St Mary’s Bay on the Romney Marsh has been found to contain high levels of a bacterium that indicates the presence of human faeces.

For the past 15 months people have been urged not to go into the sea at St Mary’s Bay, while the same advice was also issued in Littlestone in January after the water there was found to be polluted.

It will remain in place throughout the year, but the Environment Agency (EA) has now admitted it cannot say when it will be able to lift the damaging advisories.

It made the concession at a heated public meeting at New Romney’s Assembly Rooms, where angry residents and traders revealed the impact of the ongoing situation.

Gemma Bellamy, who co-owns water sports school and shop The Foiling Collective on Littlestone beach, says the business has been thrown into “turmoil”.

“We were expected to start the season in April and we were unable to open,” she said.

“Morally we have taken the decision not to open the school. We also would not be covered by the insurance company.

“We are making no money and the do-not-swim warning has thrown us into turmoil.”

The 41-year-old says she and the firm’s two other owners are now being forced to look at other locations to “keep the business alive”.

“Nothing is going to happen in the next 12 months to change anything,” she said.

“It sounds like the situation is more likely to improve in the latter part of this decade.

“Unfortunately for Littlestone, we will be taking tourism away from the area.

“I don’t know where the business will be in a year’s time - everything is so up in the air.”

The EA monitors water quality between May and September by taking samples at designated bathing sites.

Littlestone and St Mary’s Bay are the only beaches in Kent where people are advised not to swim in the sea because the water quality is rated ‘poor’.

Tests have uncovered heightened traces of the bacterium intestinal enterococci, which is found in human poo and can cause diarrhoea and sickness.

Fingers have been pointed at Southern Water - which also had a representative at the meeting - but the firm says the issue is not associated with its storm overflows.

The EA says there is “no single cause” and that it has identified a number of sources, including dog and bird faeces and people misconnecting toilets and showers.

It says it is also investigating sewers, leaking cesspits and septic tanks.

But the leader of Folkestone & Hythe District Council (FHDC), Jim Martin (Green), says Southern Water outfall releases in Hythe must be a factor.

“I find it difficult to understand why those litres are not affecting the bathing quality water in the bay next door,” he told Wednesday’s meeting, which was attended by about 100 people.

“I’m not a scientist, but this must be having an impact.”

The bathing water in Dymchurch beach has also been downgraded from ‘good’ to ‘satisfactory’.

Dave Jacobs, who is a member of the Dymchurch Dippers – a group of more than 180 people who go sea swimming all year round – told KentOnline he fears the water quality in the village will continue to worsen.

“We have had the Dymchurch Dipper swimming group for around two years now,” he said.

“The impact the declining water quality in Dymchurch has had on our group is significant.

“We can't swim as much as we wanted to and there is the potential for people to get sick, which might be putting members off going in the sea.

“I’m yet to be assured that the water quality in Dymchurch will improve and I do fear that the water quality will go down to poor in the future.”

St Mary’s Bay, Littlestone and Dymchurch are all popular with holidaymakers, who often stay at resorts along the Marsh coastline during the summer months.

Local businesses, such as independent cafes, are highly reliant on trade in the high season.

Amid the concerns, bosses at Southern Water say it is doing a “wide range of different work to help improve water quality including relining sewers” and “resolving and investigating illegal misconnections”.

New Romney town councillor Paul Thomas (Ind) has now confirmed the authority will also be providing its own water testing to inform residents and visitors of pollution levels in the bathing water in the area.

He said: “The agencies for the first time have communicated with the council and residents and hopefully are now going the right way about it.

“The town council is going to do our own water testing and give these out to residents and visitors. This will allow people to understand the water quality levels on a regular basis.

“They have not closed the beaches. It is an advisory not to swim and our results can help give people the right advice.”

The results will provide people with consistent readings so beach-goers can make a decision on whether or not to swim.

Southern Water’s open water improvement lead, Tom Gallagher, said: “We are working hard with partners, including the Environment Agency and Folkestone and Hythe District Council, to improve water quality in St Mary’s Bay and in all the surrounding areas.

“The reasons behind the sample results are complex, and none of the samples collected by the Environment Agency in 2023 were likely to have been affected by our overflows.

“However, we know we have a key role to play and St Mary’s Bay, Littlestone, Dymchurch and Folkestone are key locations in our improvement plans.

"We’re doing a wide range of different work in the area to help improve water quality, including relining sewers and resolving and investigating illegal misconnections and connecting private cess pits to our network.

“This meeting was important for residents and stakeholders who are understandably concerned about bathing water quality and want to see improvements, and we welcomed the opportunity to answer questions, speak about the work we’re doing and the complexities of this issue.”

While no timeframe has been given on the lifting of restriction, the EA says it will continue to work to “find solutions”.

A spokesperson said: “We welcomed the chance to speak to a wider group of residents this week to answer questions and gather further intelligence to assist our investigations.

“We have identified that pollution at St Mary’s Bay, Littlestone and Dymchurch comes from a number of different sources.

“Our investigations have included extensive collaborative work with Southern Water and Folkestone & Hythe District Council, and we will continue to work with partners to find the solutions to improve the water quality along this stretch of coastline.

“At the meeting we outlined ways in which the public can also help to minimise pollution sources and we look forward to working with residents to continue to improve water quality in the area.

“Please report any pollution to us on our Incident Hotline on 0800 807060.”