MDEQ Issues Water Contact Advisories For Three Locations

MDEQ Issues Water Contact Advisories For Three Locations

(JACKSON, Miss.) — The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), through its Beach Monitoring Program, issued water contact advisories today for three sampling stations.  These segments of beach are not closed; however, there may be an increased risk of illness associated with swimming in those areas.

MDEQ is working closely with local officials to advise residents that the water in the following locations may have high bacteria levels:

● Station 3 – Waveland Beach — from Oak Boulevard east to Favre Street.

●Station 4 – Bay St. Louis Beach — from the box culvert east to Ballentine Street.

●Station 8 — Gulfport West Beach — from Maria Avenue east to Camp Avenue.

When water samples show that levels are safe for human contact, the advisories will be lifted.  The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, which performs water sampling of the Mississippi Gulf Coast beaches for MDEQ, notifies the agency when an area has returned to acceptable levels.

Additionally, swimmers are reminded that the Beach Task Force has a standing recommendation that swimming not occur during or within 24 hours of a significant rainfall event.

More information on the Mississippi Beach Monitoring Program:
http://www.usm.edu/gcrl/msbeach/index.cgi.

To receive beach advisories directly, send an email to rwilbur@deq.state.ms.us for inclusion in a public group email list, text “beach” to 601-863-8082,

or follow MDEQ on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/MDEQ.

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