How Did Your Beach Rate in 2014 for Bacteria?

The Washington Department of Ecology’s list of top ten beaches for water quality does not include a single Bainbridge beach. It only has one Kitsap beach: Evergreen Park. But we did make the list of beaches with more than one seasonal swimming advisory or closure because of Eagle Harbor’s 2014 sewage spills. We were the only city in Kitsap to earn that “distinction.”

If you sift through the sand to get to the good news, it’s that someone has been monitoring our beaches to collect the data so we know what condition they’re in. Over the summer last year, Ecology monitored 12 beaches in Kitsap County, including three on Bainbridge: Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park Beach, Fay Bainbridge Park Beach, and Joel Pritchard Park Beach.

Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park Beach

Ecology sampled this beach weekly, totaling 17 times, from May 27 through August 26, 2014. Ecology found high bacteria levels on June 16 that were in the swimming advisory range. By June 18, bacteria levels had dropped. August 13 sampling found “very high levels of bacteria,” requiring closure of the beach to swimming. By the next day, the levels had dropped again.

During 2014, Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park was closed to swimming numerous times because of sewage spills that happened on January 24, February 19, June 4, August 10, and October 7 and were caused by sewer force main breaks, lift station overflows, and sewage line breaks.

Fay Bainbridge Park Beach

Ecology sampled Fay Bainbridge Park Beach weekly, totaling 14 times, from May 27 through August 26. The beach met swimming standards with all samples, and Ecology described the water quality as “very good.”

Joel Pritchard Park Beach

Ecology sampled this beach weekly, totaling 15 times, from May 27 through August 26. All samples showed “excellent water quality,” but the beach was closed to swimming between June 4 and 11 because of an Eagle Harbor sewage spill.

These three beaches have made the monitoring list for 2015 as well so Ecology will be out weekly over the summer, collecting samples.

Statewide, 88 percent of the 65 marine beaches sampled had fewer than two swimming advisories or closures during their sampling seasons. Ecology considers this “passing” level. The annual average is 84 percent, so 2014 was an improvement.

Shellfish Closures

A number of Bainbridge beaches are closed to shellfish harvesting because of unsafe conditions, such as toxins or bacteria:

Agate Pass: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins.
Fay Bainbridge: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins.
South Point Monroe: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins.
Fort Ward: for Varnish Clams because of biotoxins.
Eagle Harbor: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.
Crystal Springs: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.
Manitou: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.
Along Greenspot, Near Yaquina: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.
Battle Point: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.
Along Olympus Beach: for Butter Clams,Varnish Clams because of biotoxins, and for clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails, and other invertebrates because of pollution.

Keep It Clean, People

Ecology recommends the following guidelines for helping our local beaches stay clean. The list didn’t include anything about sewage spills, so we added that at number one, as a reminder that our biggest beach problems on Bainbridge last year were caused by sewage leaks. Next year should be different because of the 2014 sewage line replacement in Eagle Harbor.

Don’t have sewage spills.
Clean up pet waste, bag it, and throw it in the trash. Dog waste nutrients contribute to algal growth.
Don’t feed wildlife near the beach. When they congregate for feeding, they poop.
Pick up your trash. Waste from dirty diapers can make people sick, plastic bags pollute water and can entangle or kill animals, and cigarette butts take up to 25 years to break down and are poisonous to animals that try to eat them.
Don’t swim when you’re sick. If you have diarrhea, for example, you can contaminate other swimmers.
Don’t use the water as your personal toilet. Put little kids in swim diapers.
Don’t discharge your boat’s bilge water and sewage-holding tanks into the water. Only use approved disposal facilities. See Washington State Pumpout Locations (at State Parks) for a map of where to pump.
Don’t spill fuel from your boat or watercraft.
Put fish guts and heads in the trash, not back into the water. Fish entrails can attract wildlife, which increases wildlife waste on the beach.