The BEACH Act of 2000 is responsible for vast improvements in beach monitoring programs across the country. All coastal states now operate beach monitoring programs. The BEACH Act set national water quality monitoring and reporting standards and authorizes yearly grants to states for beach monitoring.
Unfortunately, perennial under-funding has prevented full state implementation of the BEACH Act and has left public health at risk in many instances. Although the BEACH Act authorizes $30 million to be awarded to coastal states annually to support their beach monitoring programs, the actual appropriation is usually just under $10 million each year. Because of inadequate funding, many state programs are under-staffed and do not have the resources to meet all of their testing requirements.
States are in the difficult position of having to choose which beaches to monitor and where to use their limited staff resources. Often only the highest priority beaches are sampled regularly, leaving the water quality at many beaches uncertain for most of the year.
Most cold water states also only monitor their beaches from Memorial Day to Labor Day, even though recreational use of beaches extends year-round. Continued reliance on out-dated science also hinders proper implementation of beach monitoring programs. Currently, approved water testing methodologies require a 24 hr lag time before results are available. States are also unable to use their BEACH grants to track and clean-up any sources of beach pollution, so that we could truly see improvements at our beaches.
An evaluation of the BEACH Act by the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) can be viewed at http://transportation.house.gov/Media/File/water/20070712/GAO%20-%20Testimony.pdf
The Clean Coastal Environment and Public Health Act, HR 2093, was submitted to the House of Representatives by Members Pallone (NJ), Bishop (NY), and Bilbray (CA). Senators Lautenberg (NJ)and Voinovich (OH) submitted the companion bill, S 878, to the Senate. As originally submitted, the Clean Coastal Environment & Public Health Act:
- Reauthorizes the BEACH Act of 2000 for 5 years;
- Doubles the amount of funding available to states, to $60 million, so that a greater number of beaches can be monitored and more frequent monitoring can be conducted;
- Allows funds to be used for pollution source detection and cleanup to prevent future incidences of closings and advisories;
- Requires EPA to approve and states to use rapid test methods for monitoring beach water pollution;
- Speeds up requirements to notify beachgoers immediately after contamination is found;
- Requires public health authorities to notify environmental agencies when contamination is found at the beach; and
- Requires compliance reviews to ensure that state and local programs receiving federal funds are meeting the minimum requirements of the BEACH Act.
HR 2093 was marked up by the House Committee and now it only raises the funding level to $40 million. Language for pollution clean-up has been removed, and a study on the impacts of nutrient pollution has been added.
The House of Representatives has already passed this piece of legislation twice, but the bill has never seen the Senate floor for a vote. Help us convince the Senate to move this bill while the beach season is upon us.
