WORKS to improve the quality of Burnham's sea water took a big step forward this week.

Wessex Water has closed The Clink road in Bridgwater for 24 hours a day for three weeks so major sewerage work can be carried out.

The work is part of Wessex Water £39m project to improve bathing water in the Burnham area, which was given a 'poor' classification under new EU regulations brought in last year.

This work is one of 12 schemes Wessex Water is undertaking along the mouth of the River Parrett and in Bridgwater to upgrade sewerage infrastructure to help improve bathing water quality of Burnham Jetty.

The project aims to reduce the number of CSOs (combined sewer overflows) that are used during intense rainfall to discharge waste water in watercourses, increase the capacity of the sewer network and treat sewage to the highest standards so it can be safely released back in to the environment.

Wessex Water says it is due to complete all the work in 2018.

A spokesman for Wessex Water said: "As well as our significant investment, we are also working with other organisations to help identify and resolve other sources of pollution that affect bathing water quality.

"This includes a partnership initiative to work with local communities to understand how our daily activities can have an effect on the quality of the bathing water.

"This will include working with dog walkers, local restaurants and cafes and residents to reduce levels of dog waste, presence of seagulls and misconnected drains which can all increase the levels of bacteria entering the sea."

Burnham was one of 10 beaches in the UK which were previously regarded as safe but have been deemed too dirty for swimming under the new tougher EU standards.

The change in rating meant the popular 1.5 mile Stert Island swim, which normally takes place in August, has been cancelled for the first time in 15 years, with organisers West Country Triathletes saying the new rating invalidated any insurance.