13 Mar, 2010
How’s the Water this Week at Your California Beach?
Posted by: Beach Reporter In: beaches| california
It’s time to check out the water quality again and find out where it’s naughty or nice along the California beaches and coast. There are still over 30 failing grades this week in the water quality report card, and the failures continue to come from south San Diego County at the Tijuana River where four beach points are closed.
In addition to the closures, the failing grades come primarily from Southern California this week, though a portion of Stinson Beach in Marin, and Alameda’s Crown Beach Bird Sanctuary both are on the list. Good news for everything else north of Santa Barbara County is that the water has improved in those few trouble spots that stayed on the list for over a month. Good news, indeed.
Now comes the losers–Most of the coast was fine, but a few spots should be avoided in: Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and Santa Barabara (there are 58 counties in California and approx. 15 of them with beaches and public access fronting the Pacific Ocean).
What does an F grade mean? In the real world, the F doesn’t close the beach down, but it provides you a warning that you’d be better off not entering the water and not putting your kids in the water, either. Failure (F) comes from a variety sources and pollutants that include harmful chemicals and human waste. Water samples are taken by volunteers and are tested weekly through grants supplied to Healthebay.org. The information is published each week.
Los Angeles County Beaches with F Grades / 15 locations
- Alamitos Bay - 56th Place - on bayside
- Alamitos Bay - shore float
- Alamitos Bay, 2nd St. Bridge & Bayshore
- Cabrillo Beach - harborside at restrooms
- Cabrillo Beach- harborside at boat launch
- Colorado Lagoon, north
- Colorado Lagoon, south
- Escondido Creek, just east of Escondido State Beach
- Marie Canyon storm drain at Puerco Beach, at 24572 Malibu Rd.
- Marina del Rey, Mothers’ Beach - playground area
- Mother’s Beach - Long Beach - north end
- Paradise Cove Pier at Ramirez Canyon Creek mouth
- Surfrider Beach (breach location)- daily
- Topanga State Beach at creek mouth
- Will Rogers State Beach at Santa Monica Canyon drain (Chautauqua)
San Diego County Beaches with F Grades / 4 locations + 4 Beach Closures
- Border Field State Park, proj. of Monument Rd.
- Mission Bay, Visitor’s Center - proj. of Clairemont
- Oceanside, San Luis Rey River outlet
- Tijuana Slough NWRS, Tijuana Rivermouth
Beach Closures in San Diego County
- Border Field State Park, Border Fence (north side)
- Border Field State Park, proj. of Monument Rd.
- Tijuana Slough NWRS, 3/4 mi. no. of Tijuana River
- Tijuana Slough NWRS, Tijuana Rivermouth
Orange County Beaches with F Grades / 5 locations
- Capistrano Beach - 7500′ south of outfall - at Camino Estrella
- Dana Point- Doheny Beach, north of San Juan Creek
- Dana Point- San Juan Creek, ocean interface
- Doheny Beach - 1000′ south of outfall
- Huntington State Beach- projection of Magnolia Street
Santa Barbara County Beaches with F Grades / 5 locations
- East Beach at Mission Creek
- El Capitan State Beach at Canada del Capitan
- Gaviota State Beach at Canada de las Cruces
- Jalama Beach at Jalama Creek
- Refugio State Beach at Canada del Refugio
Marin County Beach with F
- Stinson Beach, South
Alameda County F Grade
- Crown Beach Bird Sanctuary