What are Southern California’s cleanest beaches?
Published Sunday, September 12, 2010 at 1:02 pm
Special to The LA Times
By Rosemary McClure
Five Orange County beaches and one San Diego County beach received high marks in an annual survey that takes the pulse of the nation’s shorelines.
The beach water quality report, released each summer by the Natural Resources Defense Council, said pollution had caused 2,904 closing and advisory days in California last year and 18,682 nationwide.
The six Southern California beaches that merited the report’s highest rating, five stars, were Bolsa Chica State Beach (in photo above), Huntington City Beach at the Beach Hut, Newport Beach, Salt Creek Beach in Dana Point and portions of Laguna Beach, all in Orange County; and portions of Cardiff State Beach in San Diego County.
The 20th annual report, “Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches,” analyzes government data on beach water testing results from 2009 at more than 3,000 beaches nationwide. It issued five-star ratings for 200 of the most popular beaches. The findings were based on indicators of beach water quality, monitoring frequency and public notification of contamination.
In California, 9% of beach water samples violated state health standards in 2009, indicating the presence of human or animal waste, the report said. Sewage spills and storm water runoff are the major known sources of pollution in California beach water.
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