09-09-2005, 01:15 AM
The number of lakes area beach closings rose during the summer of 2005 over the closings ordered in past few summers, according to information from the Oakland County Health Division.
A total of 10 lakes area beaches were closed a total of 16 times in 2005, compared to 11 closures at seven beaches in 2004.
However, according to Mark Hansell, the Health Division's environmental health services unit supervisor, those numbers could be deceiving.
Hansell said because of the division's sampling practices, the same beaches are not necessarily tested each year.
The Oakland County Health Division's Environmental Health Services unit monitors about a third of the nearly 400 public and semi-public beaches in the county each year to determine if they are safe for swimmers. The program runs from June until the middle of August each year.
The department's monitoring program tests water samples from about 100 beaches every summer, with priority given to commercial and government-owned beaches, such as those at state, county and municipal parks. Many other beaches monitored include those belonging to a neighborhood.
"Those aren't public beaches, so they're not sampled every year. They're considered semi-public because they're restricted to use by certain residents," Hansell said. "We put, by request, any kind of neighborhood association that wants their private beach sampled on our list. Since there are so many in Oakland County, we're only able to monitor them on a five-year rotation.
"We actually have close to 400 beaches on our list and only 55 are public-owned," he added. "When we sample, we can handle roughly 100 to 110 beaches per year. So we have to rotate those in that we're not required (to be monitored) by law."
Monitored beaches are to meet a one-day standard of no more than 300 bacteria colonies per 100 ml of water, and a 30-day geometric average standard of no more than 130 colonies per 100 ml. Beaches where water samples exceed those bacteria standards are closed until additional testing shows bacteria levels have dropped.
E. coli has become the target of beach water monitoring programs because it's an indicator of more harmful bacteria. Fecal coliform — the formerly used indicator — suggests a wide variety of bacteria that may not be especially harmful to humans.
Exposure to high levels of bacteria can cause such ailments as ear and eye infections, vomiting and other symptoms. Most recreational water illnesses are spread by swallowing, breathing or having contact with contaminated water.
If a beach is closed, Hansell said, it is tested again the next day or later in the week and isn't reopened until its bacteria colony levels drop below the two standards.
Camp Dearborn's Lake No. 1 at Phillips Lake in Milford was closed three times this year, including one prolonged, six-day period in early August. None of the bacteria levels during that time exceeded the single-day limit, but rather the 30-day limit. It was also closed one day in June with 407 bacteria colonies found, and once in July when 1,198 bacteria colonies were found in a water sample.
The Lake Angelus Lakeview Estates beach at Morgan Lake in Waterford Township was closed twice this year, but for multiple days each time. In mid-July the beach was shut down for five days with peak bacteria levels found at 746 colonies. Again at the end of that month the beach closed for a week due to bacteria levels exceeding the 30-day limit but not the single-day limit.
Also in Waterford, Woodhull Lake's Woodhull Lake Civic Association beach was closed twice in 2005. While the beach was shut down for a day in July with 659 bacteria colonies, it experienced the longest lakes area closure after initially being shut down with a bacteria colony level of 886 on Aug. 3. It reached its peak bacteria level of 1,967 colonies two days later. The beach remained closed until Aug. 18.
"We don't know exactly what caused those (levels), but we do have those on our inspectors' notes along with information that it seems to be a pretty hot spot for waterfowl — there's a lot of ducks and geese out there," Hansell said. "So even a little minor rain would cause a lot of flushing into the water and cause the (bacteria) levels to stay high."
Hansell said the problems the beach experienced will likely keep it on a list of beaches to be sampled for the third consecutive year next year.
"We take the 55 (beaches) we know we have to sample, and then we pull the ones that had bad problems the year before and add those, so we'll probably sample that beach again next year," he said. "After we pull the problem beaches, we come up with a number."
That number, he said, determines the final amount of rotating lakes to be sampled for the year.
Other lakes area beaches exceeding the 300 bacteria colonies per 100 mL of water limit included the Bloomfield Square Beach Association at Walnut Lake in West Bloomfield, which was closed twice (with 860 and 359 colonies recorded), the EV Mercer City Beach on Walled Lake in Walled Lake (562 bacteria colonies), the Hill n' Dale Park beach at Hawk Lake in Commerce Township (328 colonies), the Nantucket Village beach on Wolverine Lake (346 colonies), the Powers Picnic Site beach on the Huron River in Milford, and the Keego City Harbor Beach at Cass Lake in Keego Harbor (361 colonies).
The Beachwalk Apartments beach on Walled Lake in Novi also saw a one-time spurt of high bacteria, as 2164 colonies per 100 mL of water were recorded on June 8. The beach opened the next day with only 43 bacteria colonies found.
"A flash like that is what I call a floating plume. It could be due to runoff," Hansell said. "If it's just a one-time thing like that, we could go back and look into rain data, but my guess is we had a heavy rain and that caused a lot of runoff. That would cause the mammal and bird waste to wash into the water, and with just normal current, it would flow a certain direction, in this case toward the beach."
Hansell said the wind and current could have just as easily helped flow the contamination away from the beach as quickly as it arrived.
Josh Jackett is a staff writer for the Spinal Column Newsweekly
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A total of 10 lakes area beaches were closed a total of 16 times in 2005, compared to 11 closures at seven beaches in 2004.
However, according to Mark Hansell, the Health Division's environmental health services unit supervisor, those numbers could be deceiving.
Hansell said because of the division's sampling practices, the same beaches are not necessarily tested each year.
The Oakland County Health Division's Environmental Health Services unit monitors about a third of the nearly 400 public and semi-public beaches in the county each year to determine if they are safe for swimmers. The program runs from June until the middle of August each year.
The department's monitoring program tests water samples from about 100 beaches every summer, with priority given to commercial and government-owned beaches, such as those at state, county and municipal parks. Many other beaches monitored include those belonging to a neighborhood.
"Those aren't public beaches, so they're not sampled every year. They're considered semi-public because they're restricted to use by certain residents," Hansell said. "We put, by request, any kind of neighborhood association that wants their private beach sampled on our list. Since there are so many in Oakland County, we're only able to monitor them on a five-year rotation.
"We actually have close to 400 beaches on our list and only 55 are public-owned," he added. "When we sample, we can handle roughly 100 to 110 beaches per year. So we have to rotate those in that we're not required (to be monitored) by law."
Monitored beaches are to meet a one-day standard of no more than 300 bacteria colonies per 100 ml of water, and a 30-day geometric average standard of no more than 130 colonies per 100 ml. Beaches where water samples exceed those bacteria standards are closed until additional testing shows bacteria levels have dropped.
E. coli has become the target of beach water monitoring programs because it's an indicator of more harmful bacteria. Fecal coliform — the formerly used indicator — suggests a wide variety of bacteria that may not be especially harmful to humans.
Exposure to high levels of bacteria can cause such ailments as ear and eye infections, vomiting and other symptoms. Most recreational water illnesses are spread by swallowing, breathing or having contact with contaminated water.
If a beach is closed, Hansell said, it is tested again the next day or later in the week and isn't reopened until its bacteria colony levels drop below the two standards.
Camp Dearborn's Lake No. 1 at Phillips Lake in Milford was closed three times this year, including one prolonged, six-day period in early August. None of the bacteria levels during that time exceeded the single-day limit, but rather the 30-day limit. It was also closed one day in June with 407 bacteria colonies found, and once in July when 1,198 bacteria colonies were found in a water sample.
The Lake Angelus Lakeview Estates beach at Morgan Lake in Waterford Township was closed twice this year, but for multiple days each time. In mid-July the beach was shut down for five days with peak bacteria levels found at 746 colonies. Again at the end of that month the beach closed for a week due to bacteria levels exceeding the 30-day limit but not the single-day limit.
Also in Waterford, Woodhull Lake's Woodhull Lake Civic Association beach was closed twice in 2005. While the beach was shut down for a day in July with 659 bacteria colonies, it experienced the longest lakes area closure after initially being shut down with a bacteria colony level of 886 on Aug. 3. It reached its peak bacteria level of 1,967 colonies two days later. The beach remained closed until Aug. 18.
"We don't know exactly what caused those (levels), but we do have those on our inspectors' notes along with information that it seems to be a pretty hot spot for waterfowl — there's a lot of ducks and geese out there," Hansell said. "So even a little minor rain would cause a lot of flushing into the water and cause the (bacteria) levels to stay high."
Hansell said the problems the beach experienced will likely keep it on a list of beaches to be sampled for the third consecutive year next year.
"We take the 55 (beaches) we know we have to sample, and then we pull the ones that had bad problems the year before and add those, so we'll probably sample that beach again next year," he said. "After we pull the problem beaches, we come up with a number."
That number, he said, determines the final amount of rotating lakes to be sampled for the year.
Other lakes area beaches exceeding the 300 bacteria colonies per 100 mL of water limit included the Bloomfield Square Beach Association at Walnut Lake in West Bloomfield, which was closed twice (with 860 and 359 colonies recorded), the EV Mercer City Beach on Walled Lake in Walled Lake (562 bacteria colonies), the Hill n' Dale Park beach at Hawk Lake in Commerce Township (328 colonies), the Nantucket Village beach on Wolverine Lake (346 colonies), the Powers Picnic Site beach on the Huron River in Milford, and the Keego City Harbor Beach at Cass Lake in Keego Harbor (361 colonies).
The Beachwalk Apartments beach on Walled Lake in Novi also saw a one-time spurt of high bacteria, as 2164 colonies per 100 mL of water were recorded on June 8. The beach opened the next day with only 43 bacteria colonies found.
"A flash like that is what I call a floating plume. It could be due to runoff," Hansell said. "If it's just a one-time thing like that, we could go back and look into rain data, but my guess is we had a heavy rain and that caused a lot of runoff. That would cause the mammal and bird waste to wash into the water, and with just normal current, it would flow a certain direction, in this case toward the beach."
Hansell said the wind and current could have just as easily helped flow the contamination away from the beach as quickly as it arrived.
Josh Jackett is a staff writer for the Spinal Column Newsweekly
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