Unhealthy Bacteria In Pools Brought By Tourists, Says Health Inspector

In a conversation with Vísir, CEO of the South Iceland Health Inspection Authority Sigrún Guðmundsdóttir claimed that unchlorinated pools and lagoons could contain unhealthy bacteria brought in by tourists. She described the proliferation of unchlorinated lagoons as worrisome.

The single most polluting factor in pools is unbathed visitors, with no way of knowing what people bring in when entering the pools in dirty underwear or activewear, she went on to say.

“I think businesses should implement harsher rules regarding the swimwear. People enter the pool in dirty clothes and some of these pools are unchlorinated. Therefore, all the bacteria brought in by tourists contaminate the pool,” she said.

According to Sigrún, pathogenic bacteria could contaminate the pools, but infections could also arise in chlorinated pools. There are 11 new unchlorinated lagoons in the process of construction around the country.

Furthermore, Sigrún said that the regulations concerning Iceland’s pools were muddy and ambivalent. However, the Environmental Ministry is in the process of making necessary changes, Sigrún claimed.