13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (2024)

Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. Homepage

Newsletters

Subscribe

Travel

Zoë Miller

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (1)

Wide scale pollution has turned some of the world's most beautiful beaches into trash heaps.

Advertisem*nt

From Hawaii's Kamilo Beach — which is so littered by man-made debris that it earned the nickname "Plastic Beach" — to Henderson Island, a remote, uninhabited island in the South Pacific whose beaches are some of the dirtiest on Earth, these former sandy paradises now resemble garbage dumps.

Looking at studies from different nonprofits, organizations, and researchers, we found 13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world.

Advertisem*nt

Kamilo Beach, Hawaii, United States

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (2)

Kamilo Beach, also known as "Plastic Beach," is one of the dirtiest places on the planet. Located in a rural area of Hawaii's Big Island, Kamilo is a wasteland of plastic debris. In fact, thousands of pounds of man-made detritus,ranging from hair brushes to water bottles, wash up every year. Some of the waste is carried from as far away as Japan and Russia.

One reason why this beach is so polluted is due to its proximity to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a high-pressure area that traps ocean debris. It was discovered in 1997 by oceanographer and boat captain Charles J. Moore. Contrary to what many people imagine, the majority of the garbage is so small that it's not immediately visible to the naked eye.

Guanabara Bay Beaches, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (3)

Rio's notoriously polluted Guanabara Bay gained media attention before and during the 2016 Summer Olympics, when athletes competing in events like sailing and rowing were exposed to its mucky waters.

According to an investigation conducted by the Associated Press, the bay water "contained dangerously high levels of viruses and bacteria from human sewage." Athletes who ingested as little as three teaspoons of the polluted water faced a 99% chance of infection.

Advertisem*nt

El Gringo Beach, Bajos de Haina, Dominican Republic

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (4)

Pure Earth — a New York-based nonprofit formerly known as the Blacksmith Institute that aims to identify and clean up polluted sites around the world — once designated Bajos de Haina as one of the most polluted places on Earth.

Nicknamed "Dominican Chernobyl," the city outside El Gringo Beach is filled with chemical and pharmaceutical plants — not to mention an oil refinery. The Inter Press Service news agency reports that these factories emit high quantities of toxic substancesincluding formaldehyde, lead, ammonium, and sulfuric acid each year.In addition to releasing airborne toxins, local factories are also said to dispose of waste by dumping it into the water.

Advertisem*nt

Henderson Island, Pitcairn Island Group, British Overseas Territories

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (5)

It may be a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but Henderson Island — a remote, uninhabited coral atoll in the South Pacific — has some of the most polluted beaches in the world.

The island has been in the public eye in recent years thanks to Jennifer Lavers, a researcher at the University of Tasmania. Lavers visited the island in 2015 to study its plastic pollution after seeing images of the detritus on Google Street View. Over the course of three months, her team found more than 53,000 pieces of man-made debris — a small portion of the estimated 37 million pieces of trash that litter Henderson's beaches.

Advertisem*nt

Juhu Beach, Mumbai, India

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (6)

Like other beaches on the coast of Mumbai, Juhu Beach has made headlines for its declining water quality.

Polluted by untreated sewage from nearby slums and other inadequately treated waste, its water is known to contain fecal coliform bacteria whichcan cause intestinal illness,typhoid fever andhepatitis A.

Advertisem*nt

Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (7)

After China, Indonesia is the second-biggest marine polluter in the world, contributing 10% of global marine pollution.

That's why it shouldn't be shocking to learn that Kuta Beach, one of Bali's most popular tourist destinations, is often covered in garbage — especially during the rainy season when huge amounts of garbage wash on shores.

Advertisem*nt

Serendipity Beach, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (8)

It's no secret that Cambodia's beaches are polluted. In 2016, US News and World Report ranked Cambodia's coastline as the dirtiest in the world based on the amount of trash collected by volunteers from the International Coastal Cleanup. With an average of 1,072 pieces, Cambodia topped Albania, where volunteers collected 877 garbage samples per mile of coastline.

Serendipity Beach, also known asOchheuteal Beach, is no exception.TripAdvisor reviewersagreethat this beach is dirty. "The beach itself could have been beautiful but is instead filthy with litter," writes one user.

However, as photographer Niamh Peren told The Guardian, the rapid increase of garbage is symptomatic of a larger issue. Lacking a water filtration system, people in Sihanouk rely on bottled water to survive. In total, 4 million Cambodians do not have access to safe water, according to Water.org.

Advertisem*nt

Poche Beach, California, United States

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (9)

In its annual survey of more than 450 of the Golden State's beaches, the nonprofit Heal the Bay deemed the ocean outlet at Poche Beach in San Clemente the most polluted stretch of sand in California this year.

Heal the Bay assigns beaches report card grades ranging from A to F, with a failing mark indicating extreme pollution. However it's important to note that this is the first time Poche made the list.

Advertisem*nt

Cheung Sha Beach, Lantau Island, Hong Kong

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (10)

Over the past few years, Hong Kong's beaches have been scourged by trash and oil spills. While a massive influx of trash from mainland China washed ashore in 2016, a palm oil spill last August fouled beaches with more than 90 tons of oil waste, which congealed on the sand.

Based on TripAdvisor reviews, Cheung Sha Beach — Hong Kong's longest— is one of the dirtiest.

"I have never seen such a polluted beach in Hong Kong, you could not even make your way into the water due to all the plastic," a TripAdvisor user writes in her review of Lower Cheung Sha Beach.

Another user writes, "Huge amounts of plastic and medical waste had washed up on to the beach creating an apocalypse that we didn't expect to see in cosmopolitan Hong Kong."

Advertisem*nt

Hann Bay, Dakar, Senegal

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (11)

Once known for its miles of pristine white sand beaches, Hann Bay is now one of the most polluted waterways in Senegal.

Since Hann is located near Dakar's industrial port, waste water from food and chemical companies, slaughterhouses, and other factories regularly trickles into the bay.

Advertisem*nt

Staithes Beach, North Yorkshire, England

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (12)

Named one of the world's most dangerous beaches by The Telegraph, Staithes Beach has consistently failed to reach the European Union's cleanliness standards.

As of 2016, it's no longer designated as a bathing site — which means there are looser guidelines regarding pollution levels.A popular surfing spot, this beach becomes susceptible to sewage contamination during periods of heavy rain.

Advertisem*nt

Parlee Beach, New Brunswick, Canada

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (13)

An aging sewage system is the likely culprit behind pollution at Parlee Beach in Pointe-du-Chêne, New Brunswick.

Last summer, fecal bacteria levels were so high that New Brunswick issued a no-swimming advisory for eight days of the season.

Advertisem*nt

Foreshores Beach, Sydney, Australia

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (14)

Located between Sydney Airport and Port Botany,Foreshores Beachhas repeatedly been ranked "very poor" by the New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage in its annual "State of the Beaches" report.

The abysmal rating signifies that this estuarine beach "is very susceptible to fecal pollution and microbial water quality may often be unsuitable for swimming."

In 2014, Foreshores was briefly closed to the public when the water became mysteriously tinted orange. High in iron, the bright-colored plume was deemed non-toxic by the New South Wales Environmental Protection Authority.

Sign uphereto get INSIDER's favorite stories straight to your inbox.

Read next

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (15)

Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (16)

Thanks for signing up!

Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go.

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (17)

Environment Travel

Advertisem*nt

13 of the dirtiest beaches in the world (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Aron Pacocha

Last Updated:

Views: 5944

Rating: 4.8 / 5 (48 voted)

Reviews: 95% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Aron Pacocha

Birthday: 1999-08-12

Address: 3808 Moen Corner, Gorczanyport, FL 67364-2074

Phone: +393457723392

Job: Retail Consultant

Hobby: Jewelry making, Cooking, Gaming, Reading, Juggling, Cabaret, Origami

Introduction: My name is Aron Pacocha, I am a happy, tasty, innocent, proud, talented, courageous, magnificent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.