Friday, August 06, 2004
Beach Pollution
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has just released their 2003 Beach Report that monitors pollution on our nation's shores. This year's report details a 51% jump in pollution related beach closings and advisories from 2002. Much of this increase reflects more sophisticated testing equipment that allow scientists to better monitor the source of the pollution. The majority of the beach closings and advisories in 2003 stemmed from fecal contamination. The source of this contamination is traced to eased sewage treatment laws for coastal development and industry in wetland areas.
And then there are the Beach Bums:
NRDC has listed the following beaches as "beach bums" because they are not regularly monitored for swimmer safety and have no program to notify the public if health standards are exceeded and have either known pollution sources near the beach or volunteer monitoring data showing high bacterial levels.
Bar Harbor, Maine
Kennebunkport, Maine
St. Lawrence County, New York (all 10 beaches)
Frenchman's Bar in Vancouver, Washington
St. Lawrence County's beaches and Frenchman's Bar were Beach Bums last year.
| Permalink Here
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has just released their 2003 Beach Report that monitors pollution on our nation's shores. This year's report details a 51% jump in pollution related beach closings and advisories from 2002. Much of this increase reflects more sophisticated testing equipment that allow scientists to better monitor the source of the pollution. The majority of the beach closings and advisories in 2003 stemmed from fecal contamination. The source of this contamination is traced to eased sewage treatment laws for coastal development and industry in wetland areas.
And then there are the Beach Bums:
NRDC has listed the following beaches as "beach bums" because they are not regularly monitored for swimmer safety and have no program to notify the public if health standards are exceeded and have either known pollution sources near the beach or volunteer monitoring data showing high bacterial levels.
Bar Harbor, Maine
Kennebunkport, Maine
St. Lawrence County, New York (all 10 beaches)
Frenchman's Bar in Vancouver, Washington
St. Lawrence County's beaches and Frenchman's Bar were Beach Bums last year.
| Permalink Here
