Henley Beach

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Introduction

Henley Beach is a very popular beach, especially during the warmer months. The surrounding land is heavily urbanised. Henley Beach is quite close to the Torrens River mouth and is approximately 6 km from the Glenelg wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). The beach is also affected by numerous stormwater drains which can affect water quality. >> More

>> More on Adelaide's metropolitan beaches

Water quality assessment

Water quality at Henley Beach is assessed as being in good, moderate or poor condition by interpreting water chemistry and algal data. >> More

Water quality classification for April to September 2006

Indicator	Ecosystem	Recreation	Aquaculture
Ammonia	Poor	NA	Good
Oxidised Nitrogen	Good	NA	NA
Total Nitrogen	Good	NA	NA
Total Phosphorus	Good	NA	NA
Turbidity	Good	Good	NA
Chlorophyll (a)	Poor	NA	NA
Heavy Metals	Poor	NA	Good
Bacteria	NA	Good	NA

Notes NA = not applicable

The water quality monitoring results for this period were generally consistent with previous seasonal results for this site.

Ammonia and chlorophyll (a) were classified as poor at Henley Beach. This is most likely due to nutrient-rich discharges from the Glenelg WWTP, urban stormwater and from the Torrens River. Increased nutrients promote algal growth, particularly during the warmer months.

Heavy metals were classified as poor (copper). The source of the elevated heavy metals is most likely general urban runoff (stormwater) washing off roads and galvanised iron roofs into the marine environments during rain events. In July 2006, a new analytical method for heavy metals was introduced, which can detect metals at much lower concentrations in seawater than before. It is now possible to confidently compare concentrations to National Water Quality Guidelines for marine waters.

>> Archived results

Download water quality graphs

• Ammonia at Henley Beach
  
• Oxidised Nitrogen at Henley Beach
  
• Total Nitrogen at Henley Beach
  
• Total Phosphorus at Henley Beach
  
• Turbidity at Henley Beach
  
• Chlorophyll (a) at Henley Beach
  
• Cadmium at Henley Beach
  
• Copper at Henley Beach
  
• Mercury at Henley Beach
  
• Lead at Henley Beach
  
• Nickel at Henley Beach
  
• Zinc at Henley Beach
  
• Enterococci at Henley Beach

Download water quality data

• Water Quality at Henley Beach

Is the water quality at Henley Beach safe to swim?

The EPA provides a monthly update (fortnightly in summer) on beach water quality which details if the water during the past two weeks was safe to swim. >> More

What is being done to improve the condition of Henley beach?

The EPA established the Adelaide Coastal Waters Study in 2001 in response to concerns about the decline in coastal water quality. This study is expected to be completed at the end of 2006 and is designed to answer the main questions we have about coastal waters, including how to rehabilitate marine ecosystems.

Reports

Gulf St Vincent Metropolitan Bathing Waters - Report No 1 (493KB) Nov 1997
Gulf St Vincent Metropolitan Coastal Waters - Report No 2 (1.7MB) Jan 2004
Water Quality of Adelaide's Metropolitan Coastal Waters - a community summary (776KB) (This brochure summarises the Gulf St Vincent Report No. 2)

This page was last modified 31-07-2007