Published August 13, 2003 in various sources (see end of article).
Beaches around Florida were closed by pollution 1,745 times in 2002, more than twice as often as the year before, an environmental group reported Wednesday.
Only California had more closings, 4,553 days, according to the annual "Testing the Waters" report issued Wednesday by the Washington-based Natural Resources Defense Council.
"Too much of the water at too many beaches is still too polluted with sewage and runoff," said the NRDC's Nancy Stoner. "That means millions of American families have their beach vacations ruined ..."
Poor water quality is usually caused by polluted storm water runoff or by sewage overflows. It can cause a variety of illnesses including diarrhea and other stomach troubles.
The apparent growth in Florida's beach water-quality problems was caused by several factors, the experts said.
More rain in 2002, compared with the 2001 drought, meant more runoff, for instance. But some of the increase was because of a new state monitoring system.
Water at Florida beaches is now tested weekly, instead of every two weeks, and stricter standards are used.
"We've got one of the best beach programs in the country," said Bart Bibler, chief of water programs at the Florida Department of Health. In general, swimmers are "very safe," he told the Orlando Sentinel.
Pasco County north of Tampa had the most days of closings last year, with different stretches of beach shut down for a total of 383 days, the report said.
Popular beaches in the Daytona Beach area recorded nine days of closings in 2002, up one from 2001. But Brevard County beaches, especially popular with surfers, had no closings in 2002, down from 12 days the year before.
Nationally, beaches were closed for a combined 12,184 days last summer, a drop of 9 percent.
NRDC uses federal environmental reports, its own survey and state data to compile the list.
Occasional beach closings are evidence of a testing program that actually should give some comfort to beach goers, said Tom Flanigan, spokesman for Visit Florida, the state's tourism promotion arm.
"From a public safety perspective, when there is a problem you want those beaches closed," Flanigan said. "We don't want anyone, resident or visitor, coming to any harm."
Information from: The Orlando Sentinel, The Miami Herald, local6.com, South Florida Sun Sentinel