Before we paddle out, most of us check the conditions. We look at the waves, wind and tide, maybe even the water temperature. These things help us decide when and where to get in the water. But there’s another condition we should be checking: water quality.
The problem? Unlike wind, waves and tides, you can’t see bacteria in the water. You need someone to test for it.
State and local agencies play a critical role in monitoring recreational water and notifying the public when bacteria levels are too high and fail to meet health standards. But these programs often have limited funding and resources, which means they can’t test every beach, and testing frequency and sampling seasons are limited. This can leave gaps, especially at less-visited beaches and during the off-season, when surfing and other ocean recreation remains popular year-round. That’s where Surfrider’s Blue Water Task Force (BWTF) comes in.
Blue Water Task Force programs are run by trained volunteers who collect and test water samples at beaches and in other coastal recreational waterways. By monitoring places and times that may not be covered by government programs, BWTF helps fill those gaps to give communities a better picture of what’s happening in the water they use. Sometimes that means working directly with the agencies responsible for protecting public health.
South Sound Blue Water Task Force in Action
The South Sound BWTF is a great example. In the Puget Sound, near Tacoma, Washington, volunteers sample local beaches for enterococcus, a type of bacteria used as an indicator of fecal contamination. The program’s sampling runs from September through May, providing water-quality information during the months when agency-run beach monitoring is limited. Monthly results are shared with the community so paddlers, swimmers and other beachgoers can make safer decisions about when and where to get in the water.
The program is a community effort. Surfrider and Harbor WildWatch volunteers collect the samples and bring them to Tacoma Public Schools’ Science and Math Institute (SAMi), where students analyze the water with guidance from their teachers and BWTF coordinator Stena Troyer. The program also coordinates with the Washington State Department of Ecology’s Marine BEACH Program to align sampling locations and protocols to ensure their water quality data is consistent and reliable. When elevated bacteria levels are detected, they immediately share the results with the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. The County can then do additional testing and use those results to determine whether a public notification or beach closure is needed. The County recently started listing the South Sound BWTF on its website as a local water-quality resource. Stena has also had the opportunity to present the program’s work to the Tacoma-Pierce County Board of Health.
This ongoing partnership was especially important this summer, when the County asked the South Sound BWTF to help with testing because they didnʻt have enough funding. Between May and August, the BWTF team collected and analyzed 16 samples at six sites they normally monitor only from September through May. The results were good news. All of the samples came back with low bacteria levels, and no advisories were needed. What a great way to support community access to safe recreational opportunities in an urban area!
But the bigger story isn’t just the results. It's the partnership. This is a great example of how the BWTF can support and strengthen agency-led water-quality monitoring. Government testing is essential, and we need adequate funding to support it. While Surfrider advocates across the country urge Congress to increase their support for beach water quality monitoring programs, BWTF volunteers are helping to fill in the gaps and support safe beachgoing and ocean recreation in their own communities.
Just remember, water quality is an important beach condition too. And just like checking the wind, waves and tide, everyone should know how safe the water is that we’re getting into.
To volunteer or find a BWTF lab testing near you, check out our online map at bwtf.surfrider.org.