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State: Stay out of the water at Revere Beach
By adamg on Fri, 07/22/2011 - 11:54pm
That darned bacteria showed up at three times the safe limit at Revere Beach, King's Beach and Nahant Beach north of Ward Bathhouse, the state says.
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Comments
No rain excuse this time.
No rain excuse this time.
How about a warmth excuse?
I'm sure that crap (pun intended) thrives in warmer waters.
Yep
Not necessarily warmer sea water, but definitely explodes in the feeder streams that empty nearby.
Fecal coliform tends to boost at two times during the year in surface waters (at least at the Mystic River sampling sites): when the snow melts, and late summer when we get both occasional downpours and it gets hot and the dissolved oxygen levels plummet.
Who said it was "fecal
Who said it was "fecal coliform"? Bacteria can come from a number of sources (including seaweed).
Point
The press release PDF linked above doesn't use the words fecal or coliform, just "unusually high bacterial counts". DCR hasn't closed the beaches in question, rather has "posted warnings recommending against swimming."
Don't panic!
Likely Fecal Coliform
Since that is what they test for when they test for "bacteria". They may not want to say so, since this is different from, say, food-borne bacteria.
From the Dept. of Public
From the Dept. of Public Health FAQ:
Q: What kind of bacteria is the beach water tested for?
A: The water at marine beaches is tested for the presence of Enterococci. Enterococci are a group of bacterial species within the Streptococcus genus, some of which (e.g. Streptococcus faecalis) are typically found in human and animal intestines and are therefore present in sewage
So it probably is the dreaded f*cal c*liform
I assume they don't say it 'cause it conjures up images of swimming in sewage, which in a sense you already are if you swim at any of our local beaches -- it's just a matter of degree. Plus there's all the fish poop and decomposing dead critters and pieces of Osama bin Laden... YUK! No need to say the f-word and freak everybody out.
Yet another form of political correctness!
Now we don't want to offend a bacterium by saying it's associated with doo-doo. Bacteria have feelings too, y'all. don't be bacteria-ist!
Deleted the dreaded words from the original post
Thanks for noting that.
Oh no!
I walked with my feet in the water at Nahant Beach on Thursday! :( However, it was east (south, I guess?) of the bath house.
On WBZ, the DCR spokesperson was asked
why they didn't just close the beachs if there's a potential health problem. Her response to the reporter was that they can't close them because of some "colonial ordinace" about public access to beaches.
I wonder if that woman is the daughter of the mayor of Amity?
There is no Colonial
There is no Colonial ordinance about public access to beaches. The public has a right to the water beyond the mean low water line, but the state owns the land above that and controls access to it.
public access to beaches
I wish that were true, so I could swim in the ocean after the beaches close for the night.