News

Lantana’s public beach is a popular destination for families.

Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Cheryl Blackerby

    Lantana Municipal Beach came uncomfortably close to having a no-swimming advisory on July Fourth weekend.
    Bacteria levels were in the “poor” range June 28 in tests conducted by the Palm Beach County Health Department. The advisory was lifted June 30, the day before the holiday weekend, when bacteria counts dropped to the “good” range.
    Lantana Beach has had four no-swimming advisories because of high bacteria levels since the first of the year.
The beach is the worst offender of the 13 county beaches tested every two weeks by the health department.
    To make matters worse, the June 14 test showed alarmingly high bacterial levels — 1,900 enterococcus CFU (colony-forming units) per 100 milliliters. The “poor” range is 71 or greater enterococcus CFU. (The June 28 count was 260 colonies.)
    “We don’t ever see numbers that high,” said Tim O’Connor, county health department public information officer. Causes could be a leaking sewage pipe or a large ship dumping sewage.
    The health department was working with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to identify the cause, he said.
    “We usually test within 24 hours to see if Mother Nature will take care of it,” he said. “We can’t always find the source. The bottom line is we will continue to look at it.”
    Subsequent tests of Lantana Beach have been in the “good” range, but the beach is still on the health department’s radar. If bacteria counts rise to the June 14 level again the department will investigate.
    “We’re testing for sewage, so we would check lift stations for leaks, septic tanks, sewage pipes to see if any are broken, and make sure sewage facilities are working,” O’Connor said. “We would look at boats going by, and would check with the Coast Guard for boat schedules.”
    The only precautions beach-goers can take are immediately showering after swimming and staying out of the water when no-swimming advisories are posted.
    Enterococci are enteric bacteria that normally inhabit the intestinal tract of humans and animals.
    The presence of enteric bacteria can be an indication of fecal pollution, which may come from storm-water runoff, pets and wildlife, and human sewage.
    Some beaches are not flushed out by ocean tides as much as others.
    “At Gulf Stream beach, for example, water gets trapped there,” O’Connor said. Gulf Stream is not one of the 13 beaches routinely tested by the county.
    High levels of enterococci can cause gastrointestinal illness, as well as infections in open wounds, and ear and eye infections, said O’Connor.
    Meanwhile, South Palm Beach and other coastal towns are considering building    groins to help hold sand on beaches and guard against erosion, which may worsen the bacteria problem.
    “Groins interrupt the natural flow of sand and water and trap bacteria close to shore,” O’Connor said.
    Standards for bacteria testing were raised Jan. 1 this year. The new criteria for enterococci bacteria were recommended by the U.S.  Environmental Protection Agency after epidemiological studies showed disease risks from water with high bacteria levels are greater than previously thought.
    Swimmers can check beach water quality at palmbeach.floridahealth.gov and click on Beach Water Sampling.

Palm Beach County beaches tested by the health department:
• Lantana Municipal Beach
• Lake Worth Beach
• Boynton Beach
• Spanish River
• South Inlet Park
• Sandoway Park
• Carlin Park
• Dubois Park
• Jupiter Beach Park
• Ocean Inlet Park
• Palm Beach
• Phil Foster Park
• Riviera Municipal Beach