Edmonton, Alberta, has changed its attire guidelines at public pools to allow all adults and minors accompanied by their parents to swim bare-chested, saying the policy was adopted to conform to the province’s Human Rights Act.

“All patrons are permitted to go topless in City operated pools if they so wish,” says the Edmonton government on its official webpage in an article titled “Recreation Facility Safety Guideline.”

Edmonton started reviewing the swimming attire guidelines in 2019, and implemented the change in June 2022, a spokesperson for the city government told The Epoch Times.

“In 2019, the City of Edmonton began a process of reviewing the types of attire that can be worn while in pools in recreation and leisure centres, and in outdoor pools, to ensure they were aligned with Alberta’s Human Rights Act,” Christopher Webster said in an email statement.

“After thoughtful consideration, the City of Edmonton determined it cannot deny anyone from accessing a City-owned and operated indoor or outdoor pool because they wish to swim while not wearing a top,” he said, adding that “our swimming guidelines must not discriminate on the basis of gender.”

Taking photos or videos at the recreation facilities without staff permission is not allowed, according to the safety guideline.

Webster noted that the city authorities realize that some people may feel uncomfortable with this measure.

“However, this is a human rights issue and we have an obligation to treat all individuals equally when using City pools,” he said.

Webster, however, didn’t respond when asked if the city has received complaints or reports of harassment or unwanted attention as a result of this policy. He also didn’t answer a question about whether there are mechanisms in place to protect vulnerable individuals.

He also didn’t respond when asked to clarify if the city has made an official announcement of the policy since the change in the guideline took effect last June.

Priya Bhasin-Singh, director for Edmonton’s aquatics and leisure centres, told Postmedia that the city didn’t receive any feedback in relation to the swim attire policy change until after local media reported the issue this week. She said recent comments show mixed reactions toward the policy.

“We’ve seen feedback both ways,” she said, adding that “there is a lot of understanding with how we are adhering to the Alberta Human Rights Act.”

Marnie Cathcart contributed to this report.