&EFA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
EPA's BEACH Report:
Minnesota 2012 Swimming Season
September 2013
EPA820-F-13-053
Introduction
The Beaches Environmental Assessment and
Coastal Health (BEACH) Act of 2000 authorizes
EPA to provide grants to coastal and Great Lakes
states, territories, and eligible tribes to monitor
their coastal beaches for bacteria that indicate the
possible presence of disease-causing pathogens
and to notify the public when there is a potential
risk to public health. The BEACH Act requires that
recipients of those grants report their coastal beach
monitoring and notification data to EPA. This fact
sheet highlights the data submitted to EPA by the
State of Minnesota for the 2012 swimming season.
2012 Swimming Season
Monitoring and Notification
Actions
Minnesota monitored 42 coastal beaches in three
counties during the 2012 swimming season
(Figurel and Table 1). When monitoring results
at swimming beaches show that levels of specific
indicator bacteria in the water exceed applicable
water quality standards, Minnesota officials issue a
beach advisory, warning people of possible risks of
swimming.
How many beaches had notification actions?
In 2012, of the 42 coastal beaches that Minnesota
monitored, 26 (62 percent) had at least one
notification action (Figure 2). This increase,
compared to previous years, is due in part to a
June 20 flood event that affected a large portion
of the Lake Superior shoreline. The Minnesota
Department of Health has identified Lake Superior
beaches near Duluth as an area of concern due to
increased runoff and sources of bacteria.
Figure 1. Minnesota coastal counties
Table 1. Number of monitored and
unmonitored coastal beaches by
county for 2012
County
COOK
LAKE
ST. LOUIS
TOTALS
Total
Beaches
25
23
34
82
Monitored
14
11
17
42
Not
Monitored
11
12
17
40
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Figure 2: Percent of beaches with one or
more notification actions
Figure 4: Percent of beach days open
and safe for swimming
Figure 3: Duration of beach notification
actions in 2012
8-30 days
28%
Over 30 days
5%
3-7 days
23%
How many notification actions were issued and
how long did they last?
Minnesota issued 57 notification actions during the
2012 swimming season. Typically Minnesota lifts
an action when follow-up monitoring indicates that
water quality complies with applicable standards.
For the majority of actions (67percent) water quality
returned to normal and beaches were deemed safe
for swimming within a week or less. (Figure 3).
What percentage of days were beaches under
a notification action?
EPA calculates the total available beach days and
the number of beach days with notification actions
to better track trends over time. Total available
beach days are determined by multiplying the
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
li To the Beach V
• To the Beach)
92.4%
96.2%
98.9%
97.8%
95.5%
length of the beach season by the number of
beaches in the state. For 2012 EPA calculated
that 5,162 beach days were associated with the
swimming seasons of the 42 monitored Minnesota
beaches. Minnesota reported notification actions
on 394 days, meaning that beaches were open and
safe for swimming about 92 percent of the time.
This lower percentage is due in part to the June 20
flood event that affected a large portion of the Lake
Superior shoreline (Figure 4).
For More Information
For information about the Minnesota beach
program contact:
Cynthia Hakala
Minnesota Department of Health
Tel: 218-302-6150
e-mail: cynthia.hakala@state.mn.us
For general information about beaches visit:
http://water.epa.gov/type/oceb/beaches/.
For information about a specific beach visit:
http://watersgeo.epa.gov/beacon2/.
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