HEATHER BOA Bullet News CLINTON – Five Lake Huron recreational beaches had concentrations of E. coli bacteria that exceeded the provincial standard during the course of water sampling by the county’s health unit last summer.
Amberley, Goderich Main, Goderich Rotary Cove, Goderich St. Christopher and Port Albert beaches had high E. coli levels in a 
calculation of averages determined from 25 water samples taken through the summer months, according to the Huron County Health Unit’s Beach Water Monitoring Report 2011.
The report will soon be available on the health unit’s website.
Bob Worsell, who is the safe water manager for the county’s health unit, said people can still have fun at the beaches, but they need to take precautions to avoid becoming sick from E. coli bacteria, with symptoms that include diarrhea, stomach cramps, fever, nausea and vomitting. In particular, they should be aware that the risk of infection is higher when the water is cloudy or if it’s rained in the past 24 to 48 hours.
“We’re trying to walk a fine line between making people aware without being too alarmist but then saying that if you take sensible precautions you’ll most likely be fine at the beach,” Worsell said. He cautions people not to swallow the water and to wash their hands after swimming.
As well, he said E. coli bacteria are present in the sand where the water washes ashore. He suggests parents of children who play at the water’s edge ensure small hands are washed before snacks or meals.
Even with all the cautions, Worsell said there has been little evidence in health unit interviews of people confirmed to have E. coli infection that they were sick as a result of swimming at the beach. Since it’s a communicable disease that can spread to other people, it must be reported to the health unit by labs that determine positive tests of stool samples taken from people who show up sick at their physicians office or in the emergency department.
The health unit is responsible for monitoring the water quality, including E. coli concentrations, at public beaches. E. coli can land in the lake water from storm drains, rivers, septic systems, groundwater, birds and even the surface of swimmers’ skin or feces. The concentration can change depending on such things as rainfall, air temperature and wind.
Fourteen public beaches were tested at least once weekly last summer, at a depth of about one metre. The samples were sent to a lab in London that same day, which then tested the samples over a 24-hour period, because it takes 18 to 24 hours to incubate and culture E. coli. As a result, the results from samples taken on Tuesday before 2 p.m. are ready late Wednesday afternoon, more than 24 hours later.
Worsell said the time lag in testing combined with rapidly changing water conditions means the health unit is usually two to three days behind.
“So the approach we’re taking is to provide as much current information as we can and that will make people aware of some things to look for and then they can make a decision on whether they want to swim at the beach or not,” he said.
In the past week, signs that are four feet wide and three feet high were installed at public beaches in Huron County, listing precautions swimmers should take. Special signs will be posted in the event of a spill or contamination.
Worsell said the health unit’s responsibility stops at monitoring water quality at beaches and making people aware of it. For the most part, it’s up to ministries like the Ontario Ministry of Food and Rural Affairs or the Ministry of the Environment to take action to curb E. coli bacteria entering the lake. However, he said the health unit runs a septic system maintenance program, paying particular attention to those along the shoreline that aren’t functioning properly.
A $1.4-million initiative in five watersheds, including Huron County, will develop a stormwater management model to improve the quality of water that will eventually land in the lake.
“These things won’t change overnight. It’s going to take some time to get the beaches to where we’d like to see them,” Worsell said.
For more information, visit the health unit’s website.
Five beaches had an annual geomean exceeding 100 E. coli CFU/100 mL for 2011: Amberley, all three Goderich beaches and Port Albert. One beach, Port Albert, had a three-year geomean exceeding 100 E. coli CFU/100 mL. Five-year geomeans for all beaches was less than 100 E. coli CFU/100 mL. A geomean is an average based on a calculation of the central concentration of numbers, dropping outlying numbers.
