Protecting Our Beaches: Learn What EPA Is Doing To Protect Public Health At Beaches And How You Can Get Involved

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Grants
The BEACH Act authorizes EPA to award grants to eligible
coastal and Great Lakes states to help state, tribal, and local
governments develop and implement their beach monitoring
and public notification programs.

• In 2001 and 2002 EPA awarded $12 million in grants
to states to develop programs to monitor water quality
at beaches and to notify the public when water quality
problems occur.

• In 2003 EPA is awarding $9.9 million in implementation
grants.

* Grants are awarded to states using an allocation formula
based on three factors: length of swimming season, total
shoreline miles, and 2000 census population data.

• In 2004 EPA expects to continue awarding grants to
states to support their beach monitoring and notification
programs.

• States receiving grants will be required to submit beach
water quality monitoring and notification data to EPA.
To make data submission easier, EPA is creating a new
database to store beach monitoring and notification data
and display the data on the Internet.

• You can find more information on BEACH Act Grants at
www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches/grants.

Guidance
EPA published the National Beach Guidance and Required
Performance Criteria for Grants in July 2002. The guidance lists
the performance criteria that eligible applicants must meet
to receive grants to implement beach water monitoring and
public notification programs under the BEACH Act. This
guidance is also a reference on assessing beach health risks and
designing water sampling programs.
EPA created the BEACH Program in 1997 to reduce the r
through improvements in recreational water monitoring, pollut
passed the BEACH Act in 2000. The BEACH Act establishei
governments for beach monitoring and public notification, pub'
monitoring data.
Water Quality Standards
EPA encourages states and tribes to use the Agency's
published Bacteria Criteria for Recreational Waters which
recommends the use ofE. es/zand enterococci as indicators
of fecal contamination. Although some states currently use
fecal coliform or total coliform as indicators, the BEACH
Act requires coastal and Great Lakes states to adopt EPA's
recommended indicators in their water quality standards
by April 2004. Currently, 17 of 35 states have adopted the
published water quality criteria.

Survey ? ;
Each year, through the National Health Protection Survey of
Beaches (NHPSBjj state and local agencies voluntarily submit
information to EPA on their beach monitoring and public
notification programs. During the 2002 swimming season,
NHPSB revealed that out of 2,823 beaches surveyed, 709 were
affected by one or more advisories or closings. The survey is a
national inventory of swimming beaches, monitoring agencies,
and recreational water quality standards. It documents the
water quality standards, monitoring methods, and procedures
agencies use to issue beach advisories and closings.

• The number of beaches covered in the survey increased
from 1,021 in 1997 to 2,823 in 2002. The number of
agencies participating increased from 159 to 227 in the
same period.

• You can find survey information about individual
beaches on the BEACH Watch Web site at
http://yosemite. epa.gov/water/beach2003. nsf.
2800 —

2600—

2400—

2200-

2000-

J 1800—
u —
S 1600—

1400-

1200-

1000—
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Swimming Season

Number of Beaches Reporting from 1997 to 2002
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k of illness to users of the Nation's recreational waters
n control, risk assessment, and communication. Congress
requirements for EPA to award grants to states and local
h monitoring and notification guidance, and collect beach
The survey respondents reported that in many cases,
the source of pollution resulting in beach advisories and
closings is unknown. The identified sources of beach
water pollution are storm water runoff, wildlife, sewage
overflows, boating wastes, and leaking septic systems.
3%
Sewage line
blockage/break
4%
Septic system
3%
Boat discharges
Sources of Pollution Hint Resulted In Advisories and Closings In 2002
Research
Current bacteria indicator methods require 24 hours before
the results are known. EPA is developing new and faster
methods to detect pathogens and pathogen indicators of
fecal contamination. New methods developed by EPA will
be evaluated in epidemiological studies to develop better
understanding of the link between exposure to high bacteria
levels and health effects. Because there can be a large
• amount of variability in measuring bacteria levels in water,
EPA is conducting studies to measure temporal and spatial
variation of bacteria. This will help states design a better
sampling program.
"k Get informed:
* Visit EPA's Beach Watch Web site at www.epa.gov/
waterscience/beaches! You can find out whether a specific
beach is being monitored, who performs the monitoring,
for what pollutants they monitor, and if any beach
advisories or closings have been issued.
* Learn about the health of your local beach! Contact your
state, tribal, or local health or environmental protection
office to find out if and when the water at your beach is
monitored, who performs the monitoring, and where the
results are posted.

• Learn about the sources of water pollution! Most
beach pollution comes from activities upstream, so it is
important for you to know about pollutants entering the
water fro.m many different locations. EPA's Surf Your
Watershed^Web site (www.epa.gov/surf) will help you
find out .about pollutants and sources that affect the water
at your beach.

•^ Get involved:
There are many ways you can get involved in protecting and
preserving water quality at our Nation's beaches. Here are just
a few:

* Join! Getting involved in a local clean-up effort is a great
way to help federal, state, and local officials protect your
health when you swim at the beach. Chances are you
can join a group ,or organization that's already working
to protect beach water quality. Find out which groups
are active in your area by visiting EPA's Adopt Your
Watershed Web site at www.epa.gov/adopt.
' Volunteer! Become a volunteer water quality monitor
and learn about water quality issues while helping to
protect the Nation's water resources. Find out more at
www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/vol.html.

* Protect water quality at home! The best way to reduce
beach water pollution is through watershed-based
pollution prevention. Many of these efforts require major
activities by states, counties, or municipalities to improve
sewage treatment plants and keep untreated sewage out of
the water.

• Prevent beach water pollution! Conserving water, keeping
septic systems properly maintained, disposing of boat
sewage at onshore pumpout facilities, picking up after
pets, and keeping storm drains clean can all make a
difference. Visit www.epa.gov/water/yearofcleanwater/
top_things.html to learn about other things you can do to
protect your coastal watershed.
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Find out what beaches are monitored regularly
and posted for closures or swimming advisories
by visiting the BEACH Watch Web site at
www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches.

Avoid swimming at beaches with visible
discharge pipes or at urban beaches within
24 hours after a heavy rainfall.
For More Information
For more information about water quality at your beach,
contact your local or state health or environmental protection
department. You can find the telephone number in the blue
section of your local telephone directory.
You may also contact:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
BEACH Program (4305T)
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20460

EPA-823-R-03-OQ9

www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches
email: ost-beaches@epa.gov
Cover photo;
Beach landscape, Robert De Jonge, courtesy Michigan Travel Bureau
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