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TIME-RELEVANT BEACH AND RECREATIONAL WATER QUALITY AND MONITORING AND REPORTING
Citation:
ERG, Inc. TIME-RELEVANT BEACH AND RECREATIONAL WATER QUALITY AND MONITORING AND REPORTING. EPA/625/R-02/017 (NTIS PB2003-104886), 2002.
Impact/Purpose:
information
Description:
This handbook provides information on how to design and implement a time-relevant water quality monitoring program for beaches and other recreational waters. It was developed to help interested communities learn more about the beach monitoring projects associated with EPA's Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) Program and to give communities the information they need to conduct their own projects. Much of the information is provided through case studies of three monitoring projects that address the concerns of recreational swimmers, boaters, and other water users, primarily by: 1) monitoring recreational waters for indicators of waterborne pathogens; 2) collecting and managing water quality data in efficient ways; 3) notifying the public in a timely fashion of water quality conditions.
The handbook follows the case study projects through the design and implementation of their time-relevant recreational water quality monitoring programs, the development of management and delivery systems for water quality data, and the creation and implementation of public notification and risk communication programs. The case study projects highlighted in the document were conducted before Congress passed the Beaches Enviromental Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACH) Act in 10/00 and therefore may not necessarily reflect guidance associated with the Act.