WaterNews for March 12, 1998

WaterNews is a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water.

National Beach Survey Underway

EPA's Office of Water recently initiated its first annual National Beach Health Survey by sending out a questionnaire to approximately 350 local health departments in the Great Lakes and selected coastal areas. The questionnaire is designed to assess current beach activities including: governmental responsibilities, standards, monitoring, closure and advisory practices, costs, and other beach-specific information, such as beach locations. Over the next three months, the information will be collected, analyzed, and entered into an Internet-based database. Preliminary survey results will be shared with interested officials and the public by the start of this summer's vacation season. EPA, in consultation with local and state officials, will also conduct a detailed analysis of the information to help determine future actions.

This survey and other efforts are part of EPA's partnership to improve public health protection at the nation's beaches and associated recreational waters. EPA established its Beach Environment and Coastal Health (BEACH) program to promote greater consistency in beach health programs nationwide and provide better information to the public. EPA is committed to assisting local, state, tribal and other organizations with the design and improvement of their beach monitoring and advisory programs. EPA's goal is to significantly reduce problems caused by disease-causing microorganisms (or pathogens) at recreational beaches. Beach advisories or closings in the United States are generally due to the presence of bacteria or other disease- causing agents found in untreated or partially treated sewage that is then discharged into the nation's water bodies. Affected water can pose a public health threat through ingestion, skin contact, and consumption of fish and shellfish. For more information, visit EPA's BEACH Watch homepage at http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches/.

Please forward this message to your friends and colleagues who share an interest in water-related issues and would like to hear from EPA's Office of Water. To subscribe to the WaterNews listserve:

• Send an email message, leave the subject line blank, and address it to:
  waternews-join@lists.epa.gov
  
  
• In the body of the message write:
  Subscribe waternews firstname lastname
  (Please leave one blank space between each word, do not include any other message, and use your actual name- i.e. Subscribe waternews Robert Jones)

A welcome message will appear in your email box once you are officially subscribed. WaterNews will be sent to you at the end of each week. If you encounter difficulties subscribing to this list server or if you would like to be taken off the WaterNews list server at any time, please send your E-mail address to Gloria Posey at Posey.Gloria@epa.gov.

Reference Information | Web Satisfaction Survey

EPA Home | Privacy and Security Notice | Contact Us