Public Consultation on the draft Australian Recreational Water Quality Guidelines

Overview

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is inviting stakeholder feedback on draft Australian Recreational Water Quality Guidelines (the draft Guidelines).

These draft Guidelines are intended to replace the Guidelines for Managing Risks in Recreational Water (2008) and Guidance on Per and Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Recreational Water (2019) when they are finalised and published following public consultation. The Guidelines have been renamed to better reflect the scope of the guidance.

In late 2018, NHMRC commenced the update to reflect current scientific evidence and align the guidance with international best practice. The update of the draft Guidelines was overseen by the Recreational Water Quality Advisory Committee.

Further information on the draft Australian Recreational Water Quality Guidelines is available on the NHMRC website.

What are the draft Australian Recreational Water Quality Guidelines?

The draft Guidelines aim to provide a nationally consistent, best practice approach for managing recreational water quality. The primary aim of the draft Guidelines is to protect the health of humans from threats posed when using coastal, estuarine and freshwaters for recreational or cultural purposes.

The draft Guidelines are intended to form part of the National Water Quality Management Strategy, an Australian Government initiative in partnership with state and territory governments. The Guidelines contain information and guidance on health risks associated with recreational and cultural use of water bodies, including risks from exposure to:

• microbial pathogens from faecal and non-faecal sources
• other harmful organisms that may be present in water, including Naegleria fowleri
• harmful algal and cyanobacterial blooms
• chemical and radiological hazards.

What is changing?

Key changes from the NHMRC Guidelines for Managing Risks in Recreational Water (2008) include:

• a refined scope that focuses specifically on the health risks associated with water quality, instead of physical risks such as drowning or animal attacks. Links to available guidance and resources on these risks are provided in the updated Guidelines.
• a new preventive risk management framework for managing recreational water quality.
• updated chapters on hazards in recreational water including chemical, microbial, harmful algal and cyanobacterial blooms and radiological hazards. These updates have been informed by several contracted evidence reviews and adaption of recently published international guidance.
• updated guideline values and biomass triggers for several key cyanotoxins and a revised alert level framework.
• a revised screening approach for chemicals in recreational water, using screening values that are 20 times the Australian drinking water guideline values (instead of 10 times). This will replace health-based guideline values where they exist in the current version of the Guidelines.

How can I make a submission?

Submissions should be made via the online form below.

The form invites responses to specific questions on the draft Guidelines. Please note the form does not allow for attachments to be uploaded – please email the Water Team at water@nhmrc.gov.au if you wish to provide attachments for consideration.

You do not have to provide comments for all questions or on all chapters of the Guidelines. Please focus on the questions or topics of most interest to you or your organisation.

Where possible, please refer to the relevant page number of the relevant document when providing comments.

The closing date for submissions is COB 27 February 2026. Extensions may be considered upon request; please email the Water Team at water@nhmrc.gov.au before the closing date.

Why your views matter

The information provided during this consultation will help us strengthen the guidance provided for the management of risks to health from recreational water bodies. Your feedback will assist us in making this guidance as user friendly and relevant as possible.

At the end of the consultation period, all submissions will be considered by the Recreational Water Quality Advisory Committee in consultation with the NHMRC.

It is expected that the updated Guidelines will be published in late 2026.

Consultation material

The draft Guidelines, Administrative Report and the supporting evidence review (Research Protocols, Evidence Evaluation Reports and Technical Reports) are all available to download below.

You may choose to open any document or link in a new tab by right clicking and selecting "Open link in new tab".

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