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AN EMAP APPROACH FOR ASSESSING THE ECOLOGICAL CONDITION OF COASTAL BEACHES
Citation:
Smith, L M., E M. Pasko, R S. Stanley, F J. Genthner, J K. Summers, AND J M. Macauley. AN EMAP APPROACH FOR ASSESSING THE ECOLOGICAL CONDITION OF COASTAL BEACHES. Presented at EMAP Symposium, Pensacola Beach, FL, April 24-27, 2001.
Description:
Using the approach established by EPA's Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP), a pilot shoreline monitoring survey was conducted in August and September 1999, encompassing the Florida panhandle from Perdido Key, Florida to Port St. Joe, Florida. The objective of this multi-tiered survey was to develop a framework for monitoring and estimating the condition of swimmable beach areas. Thirty stations were sampled using a probablistic sampling design. Hydrographic data was collected in addition to samples for water chemistry. Bacterial indicators, entercocci and fecal coliforms, were enumerated from the water according to the EPA Beaches Environmental Assessment Closure and Health (BEACH) Program and Florida state guidelines. Additional criteria for site condition included the presence or absence of primary and secondary dunes, anthropogenic debris and vegetation. Based on EMAP evaluation criteria and Florida state criteria, the survey indicated that the majority of Florida's panhandle beaches supported defined uses, with no more than ten percent of the area showing negative impacts from nutrients and bacterial contamination.