EPA ACTION PLAN FOR BEACHES AND RECREATIONAL WATERS
Citation:
Usepa. EPA ACTION PLAN FOR BEACHES AND RECREATIONAL WATERS. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-98/079, 1999.
Description:
Americans continue to face risks of illness from swimming and other recreational activities in coastal areas, lakes, and rivers that are contaminated with disease-causing microbes. While there is no true measure of all adverse effects, epidemiology studies in the U.S. and abroad have consistently found an association between gastrointestinal illness and exposure to contaminated recreational waters. Local monitoring and management programs for recreational waters vary widely, which results in different standards and levels of protection across the country. EPA is taking a role in assisting state, tribal, and
local authorities to strengthen their programs to protect users of recreational waters,through it's Action Plan for Beaches and Recreational Waters (the "Beach Action Plan").
The Beach Action Plan is a multi-year strategy for reducing the risks of infection to recreational water users through improved water quality programs, risk communication, and scientific advances. It recognizes that authorities need the
flexibility to respond to local and regional variations in factors such as pollution sources and climate that affect recreational
waters. The Beach Action Plan responds to the Beaches Environmental Assessment, Closure and Health (BEACH) Program announced by EPA Administrator Carol Browner in May 1997 as well as the President's 1998 Clean Water Action Plan. The Beach Action Plan describes activities of EPA's Office of Water (OW) and Office of Research and
Development (ORD) to accomplish two primary objectives: to enable consistent management of recreational water quality programs, and to improve the science that supports recreational water monitoring programs.