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A New Report Highlights Some Of The Nation's Dirtiest Beaches — And California's Coast Didn't Do Great
Volunteers pick up trash on the beach on Earth Day.
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Yusra Farzan
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LAist
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Topline:
The Surfrider Foundation's most recent water quality report highlighted 10 of the United States' dirtiest beaches, and three of them are in California.
The most consistently dirty beaches in California: The bacteria levels in San Diego's Imperial Beach exceeded state regulations in 100% of the samples taken in 2023. Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica exceeded acceptable bacteria levels 54% of the time, and the San Luis Creek Mouth in San Luis Obispo failed standards in 34% of samples collected.
How did Los Angeles do?: A little better than our neighbors to the north and south, according to the report — none of the beaches highlighted were in the greater L.A. region. According to the Surfrider Foundation's most recent data, Santa Monica Pier passed state standards in 89% of the samples collected in the last 12 months.
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How did they conduct the study?: The Surfrider Foundation regularly tests beaches across the country to monitor bacteria levels. The organization then measures whether the levels exceed state standards, though the report's metrics don't take into account variation in bacteria levels as long as it's below the acceptable threshold.
What do other reports say?: Don't get too high and mighty about L.A.'s beaches — this report is just one way of measuring water quality, and L.A. beaches do worse on other metrics. For instance, Heal the Bay's most recent report ranked the area surrounding Santa Monica Pier as the beach with the worst water quality between Tijuana and Washington, tied with Mexico's Playa Blanca.
So can I swim right now?: Water quality is usually worst after rain, so avoid swimming for up to 3 days after precipitation. During the summer, you're likely in the clear barring any sewage spills. If you have any doubt, check for any health advisories on your local health agency's website. (Here are the links for L.A. and Orange Counties.)
For more details: Read the full report here.
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