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What accomplishments are reported?
EPA, in partnership with state and local governments, has made significant progress in improving public health
at our nation's beaches. EPA is pleased to report:
1. States have significantly improved their
assessment and monitoring of beaches; the
number of monitored beaches has increased
from about 1,000 in 1997 to more than
3,500 out of approximately 6,000 beaches,
as reported by the states for the 2004
swimming season.
2. EPA has strengthened water quality
standards throughout all the coastal
recreation waters in the United States; the
number of coastal and Great Lakes states
with up-to-date water quality criteria has
increased from 11 in 2000 to 35 in 2004.
3. EPA has improved public access to data on
beach advisories and closings by improving
its electronic system for beach data collection and delivery systems; the system is known as "eBeaches." The
beach information can be viewed at http://oaspub.epa.gov/beacon/beacon_national_page.main.
4. EPA is working to improve pollution control efforts that reduce potential adverse health effects at beaches.
EPA's Strategic Plan and recent National Water Program Guidance describe these actions to coordinate
assessment of problems affecting beaches and to reduce pollution.
5. EPA is conducting research to develop new or revised water quality criteria and more rapid methods for
assessing water quality at beaches so that results can be made available in hours rather than days. Quicker
tests will allow beach managers to make faster decisions about the safety of beach waters and thus will help
reduce the risk of illness among beachgoers.
What actions were implemented?
Several actions were implemented by EPA and the states under the Beach Act. The actions are summarized in
Table 1 and described below.
Promulgation of water quality standards
EPA responded to the BEACH Act's requirement that the Agency propose water quality standards using its
most current water quality criteria if states had not adopted these criteria by April 10, 2004. On November 16,
2004, EPA published a final rule that put federal standards into place for the 21 states without criteria that are as
protective of human health as EPA's 1986 criteria for coastal recreation waters.
Technical research
Since passage of the BEACH Act, EPA has initiated and conducted significant research activities. For example,
EPA—through its National Epidemiological and Environmental Assessment of Recreational (NEEAR)
Water Study—is evaluating rapid indicator methods to detect fecal contamination and assessing them with
epidemiological studies to determine how they relate them to human health. EPA has completed its recommended
studies of Great Lake waters and is now assessing this new information, as part of a process to develop new or
revised water quality criteria. EPA is assessing its further research needs at this time.
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Recommendations to improve beach water quality
In its Strategic Plan, EPA identifies "Water Safe for Swimming" as an important objective for the Agency. EPA's
National Water Program Guidance for both FY 2005 and FY 2006 summarized the Agency's key national strategies
and actions to help improve beach water quality. For FY 2005 and FY 2006, EPA's national strategy for improving
the safety of recreational waters includes four key elements:
1. Establish a new generation of pathogen indicators based on sound science.
2. Identify unsafe recreational waters and begin restoration.
3. Reduce pathogens levels in all recreational waters.
4. Improve beach monitoring and public notification.
Reducing human health risks
EPA and the states have focused on another set of actions to help reduce the human health risks at beaches
through better water quality monitoring and improved public notification. Important progress has been made
working cooperatively with state and local environmental and public health agencies. Actions include:
Beach grants
EPA provided beach program development grants to states in FY 2001 and has provided implementation grants to
all states (except Alaska) since then. EPA has awarded, or is in the process of awarding, approximately $52 million
in grants to states to develop and implement beach monitoring and public notification programs.
State and local accomplishments
Many of the actions discussed in Table 1 were accomplished through the diligent efforts of state and local public
health and environmental agencies. State-written "spotlights" provide detailed descriptions of achievements
resulting from state and local beach programs.
National program requirements and guidance
EPA published National Beach Guidance and Required Performance Criteria for Grants in July 2002. This document
established the fundamental framework for beach programs and provides guidance for receiving implementation
grants. EPA developed the document in consultation with coastal states and other interested parties over a two-
year period.
National List of Beaches
States completed the first national, comprehensive listing of beaches using a risk-based classification scheme
to identify monitoring and notification priorities. This list will eventually be linked to detailed geographic
identifiers, monitoring stations, and other data systems.
eBeaches
EPA has improved public access to data on beach advisories and closings by improving its electronic system for
beach data collection and delivery systems; the system is known as "eBeaches." This online system includes a
database of monitoring results and notification actions, thereby fulfilling the National Pollution Occurrence
Database requirement of the BEACH Act. The public can view the beach information at http://oaspub.epa.gov/
beacon/beacon_national_page.main.
Recommending improvements to monitoring
EPA and others have taken a number of actions to improve our understanding of beach water quality monitoring
and modeling. EPA is developing more rapid methods for assessing water quality at beaches so that results can be
made available in hours rather than days.
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Table 1. Accomplishments in Implementing the BEACH Act
Activity
Water Quality Criteria and Other Actions To Improve Coastal Recreation Waters
• Existing Water Quality Standards
Promulgated water quality standards for states and territories that had not yet adopted water
quality criteria for bacteria that were as protective of human health as EPA's 1986 bacteria criteria.
November 2004
National Epidemiological and Environmental Assessment of Recreational (NEEAR)
Water Study
Initiated joint study with the CDC, USGS, and others to test potential new water quality
indicators. 2001-present
Rapid Methods
Developing new water quality tests that will provide rapid results.
2001-present
Water Quality Criteria Development
Will update water quality criteria based on ongoing and planned studies.
2001-ongoing
• Recommendations to improve beach water quality
EPA's strategic plan included combination of actions to improve recreational water quality.
Evaluation of Federal, State, and Local Efforts
• National Beach Guidance and Required Performance Criteria for Grants
Published the National Beach Guidance and Required Performance Criteria for Grants, establishing
the basic requirements for beach programs that receive federal beach funds.
September 2003
July 2002
• Awarded BEACH Grants
EPA has awarded, or is in the process of awarding, approximately $52 million in grants to states
to develop and implement beach monitoring and public notification programs. 2000-present
• "eBeaches"
Designed, built, and implemented an electronic data system called eBeaches to collect, store,
and provide beach information to the public.
http://oaspub.epa.gov/beacon/beacon_national_page.main. May 2005
• National Health Protection Survey of Beaches
Continued the National Health Protection Survey of Beaches through 2002 to collect information
about state and local beach programs. 1997-2002
• National List of Beaches
Developed and published a "list of beaches" ("list of waters") that includes those with a
monitoring and notification program, as well as those without a program. 2004-present
• Floatables
Published guidance titled Assessing and Monitoring Floatable Debris to help states, tribes, and local
governments develop their own assessment and monitoring programs for floatable debris in
coastal recreation waters. August 2004
• State and Territory Accomplishments
States and territories have used BEACH Act grant funds to implement and improve their beach
monitoring and public notification programs. 2001-present
Recommendations to Improve Integrated Coastal Water Monitoring and Modeling
• Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) Beaches
Project
Conducted a study to identify those characteristics of a beach environment that have a
significant impact on monitoring in coastal recreation waters. September 2005
• Modeling
Investigated the USGS Project SAFE model. Collaborated with USGS to design the Virtual
Beach model. 2005
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EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) conducted intensive monitoring (the Environmental
Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking, or EMPACT, study) at several beaches to determine
what factors influence microbial indicator concentrations. This study provides state and local governments with
information for improving the design of site-specific beach monitoring programs. Included is an examination on
how environmental factors like sunshine, tide, rain, or wind and sampling variables (such as sampling times and
sample depth and distance from the shore) affect fecal indicator levels.
ORD has also been investigating means to improve the monitoring of beach water quality and to develop
strategies, including modeling, for timely notification of the public when bacterial contamination poses a risk to
bathers. New software called Visual Beach is being developed to support both empirical and physical approaches
in an integrated application. In collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), EPA is developing a
prototype of Visual Beach to automate statistical analytical techniques developed by USGS. The goal is to develop
a user-friendly application that can help beach managers predict the need for a beach advisory or closing up to
three days in advance.
How can I get a copy of this report?
You can download the report in PDF format from the EPA web site at http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches.
A limited number of printed copies of the report entitled Report to Congress on Implementing Beaches Environmental
Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACH) Act 2000 are available through our National Service Center at the
following address. You can order it by sending them your request, visiting their web site, or calling them. Please
ask for document number EPA-823-R-06-001 when placing your order.
EPA 823-F-06-014
September 2006
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. (4301T)
Washington, DC 20460
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