BRUNSWICK, GA (January 5, 2016) – Effective January 1, 2016, the Beach Monitoring and Notification Program began using a new bacterial level threshold – recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – in order to determine when swimming advisories should be issued. The Beach Monitoring and Notification Program is a cooperative effort between the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GDNR) and the Georgia Department of Public Health (GDPH).
The GDNR tests the water weekly at Georgia’s coastal beaches where swimming is a popular activity. When elevated levels of bacteria are found exceeding the EPA recommended threshold, the GDPH, and more specifically the Coastal Health District, issues a swimming advisory for that beach. The new bacterial threshold value recommended by the EPA is more protective of public health. However, since Georgia’s beaches have good water quality overall, the new advisory threshold is not expected to appreciably increase the number of swimming advisories.
More information on the Beach Monitoring and Notification Program can be found on the Coastal Health District website at www.coastalhealthdistrict.org or the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Healthy Beaches website at http://www.GaHealthyBeaches.org/
THIS NEWS RELEASE WAS WRITTEN AND DISTRIBUTED BY THE
GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES COASTAL RESOURCES DIVISION.
