Black Sea water quality “within norm” - National Environmental Agency

The quality of the Black Sea waters are “within norm” based on analysis of samples obtained last week across the western Georgian coastline, the country’s National Environmental Agency said on Tuesday, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.

The body said amounts of biogenic components, heavy metals and total oil hydrocarbons in the samples were “within normal range”.

The samples were taken after the Agency last week said it would monitor the quality of the water at its nine stations every 10 days to identify the “main physical and chemical parameters” including salinity, content of dissolved oxygen and biogenic elements.

Samples are sent for analysis to the atmospheric air water and soil analysis laboratory of the Agency, which “fully meets modern requirements and standards”, the body added.

The initiative comes after concerns about the quality of the waters following the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka dam in Ukraine earlier this month led to contaminated waters flowing into the Sea.

Maia Omiadze, the Head of the Georgian National Tourism Administration who has been meeting representatives of the domestic tourism sector, said the quality of the Sea water was "safe" and added "all fears" on the subject were “unfounded".

Omiadze also noted the numbers of visitors to Georgia's coastline in the ongoing summer season in her comments on the subject.