LEISURE bosses are having to close two busy swimming pools amid a national chlorine shortage.
Chiefs at Leisure World Colchester plan to keep the Cowdray Avenue venue open during the ongoing issue but are having to make temporary changes.
The action will impact both the fitness and teaching pool timetables in order to help prolong chlorine supplies and reduce the chance of further changes needing to be made, states Colchester Council.
The authority, which operates Leisure World, says the move will ensure the venue can continue to offer access to a range of classes and sessions.
The pools will be closed to the public on June 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19 and 22.
It has been confirmed swimming lessons, school and club sessions on these days will run as normal, while the leisure pool and Aqua Springs spa are currently unaffected by the shortage.
To help manage chlorine supplies, Leisure World is asking users of the pool to continue to ensure they shower before entering the water and follow the barefoot policy by removing outdoor footwear when in changing rooms or poolside.
Adam Fox, deputy leader of Colchester Council, said: “Due to the national chlorine shortage, we have put in place some proactive measures to ensure people can continue to access our swimming facilities and sessions.
“We know many other swimming pools across the country are having to close, and by acting now we can prolong our chlorine supplies and continue to offer sessions and classes for all demographics across our wide range of swimming facilities.
“We are monitoring our supplies closely and are in contact with our chemical suppliers to ensure we are in the best place possible to keep services operating.
“If we experience further delays to deliveries, we will continue to do everything we can to ensure we keep all services operational, although this may involve further changes to timetables across our offering.”
The national chlorine shortage has been attributed to several factors, including a temporarily reduced supply in the UK and a backlog coming from China’s supply chain caused by Covid.
A major fire in a US chemical plant in late 2020 and worldwide transportation issues have also contributed.
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