POLLUTION at Tivoli Brook in Margate is responsible for the town’s main bay failing to meet bathing water standards. Colin Buckle, the Environment Agency’s area environment protection manager, said the reason for the bay’s failure on June 5 cannot be confirmed but he said: "The failures of September 4 and 18 were caused by particularly poor quality water discharging from Tivoli Brook.”

Margate was the only beach in the South East not to reach the European Union directive and Mr Buckle said: “Everyone is bitterly disappointed by the poor water quality at Margate this summer.

“It is unlikely that there will be a sustainable improvement until a new sewerage treatment scheme for Margate is delivered by the water utility. Other authorities need to work closely together to bring about improvements to the Tivoli Brook.”

He said that Southern Water has proposed a scheme for the town but added “this is currently stalled”. He added: “The discharge at Foreness Point, Cliftonville, presently constitutes a comparatively massive routine bacteriological load that makes the investigation of other sources of pollution more difficult.”

Mr Buckle’s comments were made in a written statement to Terry Purser, a former seaside trader at Margate whose family work in the town’s leisure industry. He said: “It is an absolute disgrace that our main bay has failed, not once but three times.

“Tourism is our lifeblood at the seaside and yet it appears absolutely nothing is being done to clean up this problem. Tivoli Brook begins as a spring and yet by the time it reaches the sea it is polluted. There is clearly a problem with the ancient sewage system underground.

“We are living in the year 2001, not the dark ages, and yet we still cannot provide clean and safe bathing water. That is very poor. Residents and visitors don’t care who is responsible. They just want to know they can go into the sea without fear of contracting illness from polluted water.”

He has written to the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions asking for intervention and added: “I am prepare t take this all the way to the European Parliament if necessary.”

Thanet council leader Cllr Richard Nicholson said: “The council is still awaiting the conclusion of a formal investigation by the Environment Agency. Until that time we are not linking the failure of the sea bathing water at Margate with the problems at Tivoli Brook. However, we have erected notices at the brook warning of a pollution threat.”