New Hampshire Beach Closures Decreased from 2001 to 2002
Press Release Date: October 6, 2009
Location: Washington
Contact:
Anna Baxter | email: abaxter@oceana.org
Anna Baxter
Bucking the national trend, the number of beach closures in New Hampshire during 2002 decreased by almost half from 2001, falling from 146 to 72, according to the 13th annual beach water quality report, “Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches,” released today by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
During the three month swimming season the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services monitors seven marine beaches once a week, and nine marine beaches at least once a month to determine suitability for swimming. If the test results do not meet standards a sign is posted at the beach to notify the public. The number of beach closures fell due to a drought in the East and significant resampling and testing of the waters.
“Oceana applauds NRDC for raising awareness about beach water quality issues,” said Jackie Savitz, Director of Oceana’s Pollution Program. “Since beach-goers will want to ‘Know Before They Go’ whether the beach will be open for swimming, we provide a free beach closure alert service on Oceana’s web page.”
Oceana and Earth 911 have partnered to provide a free service to beachgoers that will notify them about beach closures at their favorite beaches. Beach-goers can sign up for the alerts at Oceana’s web page: www.oceana.org by clicking the “Know Before You Go” link. The alerts are sent via email, and in the future will be available via text messages for cell phones, and PDA’s. Currently Oceana and Earth 911 have beach closure information for ten states including New Hampshire and are in the testing phase with nine more states.
Nationally, the number of beach closures and advisories was high again in 2002, reaching near record levels for the past decade. NRDC’s report cites more than 12,000 closures and advisories caused by pollution at ocean, bay, Great Lakes, and other freshwater beaches across the country. NRDC also named 55 Beach Bums – those communities that do not regularly monitor beach water or notify the public if health standards are exceeded and have known stormwater or sewage sources that could pollute their water. New Hampshire beaches were not on the list. For the entire Beach Bum list and a copy of the full report, visit the NRDC’s website at: www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/titinx.asp.
Oceana is a non-profit international advocacy organization dedicated to restoring and protecting the world’s oceans through policy advocacy, science, law and public education. Founded in 2001, Oceana’s constituency includes members and activists from more than 150 countries and territories who are committed to saving the world’s marine environment. Oceana, headquartered in Washington, D.C., has additional offices in key U.S. coastal areas and a South American office in Santiago, Chile, and opened a European office in September 2003. For more information, please visit www.Oceana.org.
NRDC is a national, non-profit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has more than 550,000 members nationwide served from offices in New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and San Francisco. More information about NRDC is available through its Web site: www.nrdc.org.
