by Martin Jefferies

mjefferies@thekmgroup.co.uk

Enivironmental campaigners say half of Thanet's award-winning beaches should be stripped of their Blue Flags.

The area has more of the prestigious awards than anywhere else in the UK.

However, Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) claim five tourist hot spots fail to provide adequate emergency sewage warnings.

They list the Main Sands in Margate and Ramsgate, as well as West Bay in Westgate and Joss Bay and Botany Bay in Broadstairs, as falling below acceptable standards.

Strict guidelines state that beach users must be warned during and after any pollution incidents.

But a Freedom of Information Act request by SAS revealed that five of the isle's nine Blue Flag beaches do not request real time information on discharges from combined sewage overflows, so cannot pass this information on to beachgoers.

Keep Britain Tidy, which administers the Blue Flag scheme in England, said it was investigating.

A spokesman said: "We take the issue of combined sewage overflow spills seriously and if we find that standards are not being met we will take appropriate action, even if that means removing the Blue Flag."

SAS said Blue Flags should be lowered at the five local beaches in question until monitoring systems can be upgraded.

Andy Cummins, campaign director, said: "This disturbing revelation questions the integrity of the Blue Flag programme. At five beaches in Thanet where the Blue Flag can be seen flying, people could be bathing in sewage-polluted waters without warning."

Every beach in Thanet consistently meets European standards for bathing water quality, according to data on Southern Water's website.

A company spokesman said it had seen "tremendous improvements" since the start of a major investment programme, including an £80 million wastewater treatment scheme for Thanet.

The council has not so far responded to the findings of SAS.