How’s Your Beach? Patricia Michaels,
about.com Environmental Issues
Since summer’s only a couple of days away, you may be thinking
about hitting the beach and maybe even wondering about its water
quality. About.com’sEnvironmental Issues’
specialist Patricia Michaels can help, as she documents the ways
you can check the status of beaches near you. Michaels notes that
19 states don’t regularly monitor or report on the water quality of
their public beaches, but adds that new federal legislation now
mandates that states adopt EPA water quality standards and initiate
water-quality monitoring programs within the next 3 1/2 years.
‘States, commonly upset with unfunded mandates from the Federal
Government, need not fret,’ she writes. ‘The Act also provides up
to $30 million per year in grants to help states and local
communities establish the program.’ Read the rest of the article to
find out more about currently available resources.
–Sara V. Buckwitz
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