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Florida Summary: 2006 Swimming Season
May 2007
- Introduction
- 2006 Summary Results
- For More Information
- Print version (PDF) of this document (191 K, 2 pages, About PDF)
- Raw data (MS-Excel) for Florida (473 K)
Introduction
Figure 1. Florida coastal counties with 2006 monitored beach data.
The BEACH Act of 2000 requires that coastal and Great Lakes states and territories report to EPA on beach monitoring and notification data for their coast recreation waters. The BEACH Act defines coastal recreation waters as the Great Lakes and coastal waters (including coastal estuaries) that states, territories, and authorized tribes officially recognize or designate for swimming, bathing, surfing, or similar activities in the water.
This fact sheet summarizes beach monitoring and notification data submitted to EPA by the state of Florida for the 2006 swimming season.
During 2006 Florida monitored 307 beaches along the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. These beaches are located in 34 of Florida's 35 coastal counties. The only other coastal county has no accessible beaches along the gulf. All total, there are approximately 1,100 miles of recreational beaches in Florida, and approximately 600 miles are monitored at least once per week, year round. The geography of these beaches varies from open coasts on barrier islands to more enclosed bays, sounds, and intra-coastal water ways.
Florida's beaches are heavily used most of the year; late April to mid-September are the peak season in most of the state. The state's population is estimated at 18 million, and approximately 70 million tourists visit per year. Estimates from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) place the number of swimmers at just over 14 million a year. In addition, NOAA estimates that another 3.5 million snorklers, surfers, and divers enter Florida water's each year.
The year 2006 saw a decrease in the number of advisory days in Florida. This corresponds with the beginning of a drought affecting the majority of the state. Runoff from rain events is listed as a possible source of contamination at a large number of Florida beaches. The decrease in tropical weather systems impacting the state in 2006 also greatly reduced the need for preemptive and storm-generated advisories compared to years past. Combined with efforts to correct chronic problems at some beaches the above factors resulted in the lowest number of advisory days, 4,888, since 2002.
| County | Total Beaches | Monitored | Not Monitored |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bay | 34 | 13 | 21 |
| Brevard | 27 | 10 | 17 |
| Broward | 19 | 15 | 4 |
| Charlotte | 11 | 8 | 3 |
| Citrus | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Collier | 56 | 14 | 42 |
| Dixie | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Duval | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| Escambia | 20 | 14 | 6 |
| Flagler | 9 | 6 | 3 |
| Franklin | 6 | 5 | 1 |
| Gulf | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| Hernando | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Hillsborough | 11 | 9 | 2 |
| Indian River | 18 | 6 | 12 |
| Lee | 23 | 13 | 10 |
| Levy | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Manatee | 13 | 10 | 3 |
| Martin | 23 | 9 | 14 |
| Miami-Dade | 17 | 15 | 2 |
| Monroe | 45 | 17 | 28 |
| Nassau | 30 | 11 | 19 |
| Okaloosa | 53 | 12 | 41 |
| Palm Beach | 24 | 14 | 10 |
| Pasco | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| Pinellas | 48 | 14 | 34 |
| Santa Rosa | 10 | 7 | 3 |
| Sarasota | 34 | 16 | 18 |
| St. Johns | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| St. Lucie | 25 | 4 | 21 |
| Taylor | 5 | 4 | 1 |
| Volusia | 16 | 15 | 1 |
| Wakulla | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Walton | 17 | 9 | 8 |
| Totals | 633 | 307 | 320 |
2006 Summary Results
How many beaches had notification actions?
Figure 2: Monitored beaches with and without notification actions in 2006.
When monitoring of water at beaches shows that levels of certain bacteria exceed standards, Florida's beach managers either issue an advisory discouraging swimming at that location or immediately take a resample to confirm the first results. If the resample confirms the results of the first sample an advisory is issued discouraging swimming at that location. Of the 307 coastal beaches that were monitored in 2006, 104, or 34 percent, had at least one advisory during the 2006 season (Figure 2).
How many notification actions were reported and how long were they?
Figure 3: Beach notification actions by duration.
A total of 745 beach notification actions were reported in the 2006 swimming season. Most actions lasted 3 to 7 days. Figure 3 presents breakdowns of action durations.
What percentage of days were beaches under a notification action?
Figure 4: Beach days with and without notification actions.
For Florida's 2006 swimming season, EPA determined there were a total of 112,055 beach days associated with the 307 monitored beaches. Actions were reported on 4,888 of those days or about 4 percent of the time (Figure 4).
How do 2006 results compare to previous years?
Beginning in 2003, states are required to submit data to EPA under the BEACH Act for beaches which are in coastal and Great Lakes waters. Table 2 compares 2006 data with data reported in previous years.
| Year | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of monitored beaches | 313 | 313 | 307 |
| Number of beaches affected by notification actions | 127 | 124 | 104 |
| Percentage of beaches affected by notification actions | 41% | 40% | 34% |
