Descripción

Thanks to a partnership with the Georgia Department of Public Health and funding from the Environmental Protection Agency’s “Beach Grant”, the Coastal Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources makes sure that swimming at our beaches is safe for everyone. The Coastal Resources Division administers beach water quality monitoring, public notification and data reporting to the Environmental Protection Agency and other water quality agencies. Georgia beaches are categorized into three tiers. Tier I beaches are the most heavily visited on the coast. They are located on the more populated barrier islands of Tybee, St. Simons, and Jekyll Island. Tier II beaches are less accessible and generally have fewer visitors and amenities. Most are only accessible by boat. Tier III beaches are remote and not easily accessible. They generally have almost no potential pollution sources apart from wildlife. Advisory zones have been set for each Tier I and Tier II beach. Beaches are monitored on pre-determined weekly, bi-weekly or monthly schedules depending on the time of the year. Beaches under a permanent swimming advisory are sampled quarterly. When elevated bacteria levels are detected at a sampling location in Tier I or II, a swimming advisory is issued for the associated zone. Specifically, the Coastal Resources Division’s water quality technicians are looking for the presence of the bacteria enterococcus, which is found in the guts of warm-blooded animals. At each beach, water samples from the swimming zone are collected in sterile 250ml bottles. The bottle is submerged to knee-depth where the sample is collected. The bottle is then capped and labeled for transport. A CRD technician then uses a meter to collect readings for dissolved oxygen, pH, water temperature and other factors. Data from the meter is recorded on a field data sheet, along with information about the weather conditions and tide stage. The sample bottles are then packed in a cooler for transport to the Coastal Resources Division’s Georgia Shellfish and Water Quality Laboratory, located at Coastal Regional Headquarters in Brunswick. The cooler keeps the samples at the correct temperature as specified by the EPA. Samples are transported to the lab within six hours of collection. The lab then processes the samples within two hours of receipt. The processed samples are incubated for 24 hours. Once incubation is complete, a technician counts the bacteria colonies and calculates the bacteria level per 100ml. The technician then enters the laboratory results into the Beach Water Quality database. A single sample result of 70 per 100 ml or greater is the Beach Action Value, or BAV, and will trigger a water quality notification. The Coastal Resources Division partners with the Coastal Health District of the Georgia Department of Public Health to issue “beach advisories” for the affected area. The Coastal Health District issues swimming advisories to educate the public about health risks associated with swimming in waters with elevated bacteria levels. Other partners within local municipalities also activate signs at beach access points when an advisory is issued. Beach advisory information is also posted on the Coastal Resources Division website where an interactive map displays the current beach advisory status for each beach on the Georgia coast. Clicking on a beach opens a pop-up window showing the date and results of the latest water sample at that beach. A beach advisory does not mean a beach is closed. Rather, it simply warns the public that there is an elevated risk for swimming due to higher than normal levels of bacteria. When an advisory is made, the beach is re-sampled with a 24-hour period. Once levels are back to an acceptable level, the advisory is lifted. It is all part of the Coastal Resources Division’s mission to preserve Georgia’s coast for present and future generations.