7 Jersey Shore ocean beaches under swimming advisory due to bacteria
A PSPCA van was parked in the driveway outside of Grace Kelly's childhood home on Halloween. (Brian Hickey/WHYY)
Seven beaches in one Jersey Shore county are under swimming advisories.
According to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s njbeaches.org, the advisory covers seven ocean beaches in Ocean County due to water samples exceeding a water quality standard.
The standard for the acceptable level of enterococcus, a bacteria found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals that can cause urinary tract infections, bacteremia, bacterial endocarditis, diverticulitis, and meningitis, is 104 colonies per 100 ml of water, according to the Ocean County Health Department.
Today’s swimming advisories are at the following beaches: Taylor Avenue and Leeward Street in Beach Haven, Stockton Avenue and Joan Road in Long Beach Township, South 3rd Street and 14th Street in Ship Bottom, and North 10th Street in Surf City.
None of the beaches are closed. All bacteria levels are slightly above the maximum bacteria standard.
The ocean beaches at East Bennett Avenue in Wildwood City and Spray Avenue in Ocean Grove and the bay beach at New Jersey Avenue in Somers Point City are no longer under the swimming advisory that was issued yesterday.
Some waterways are typically susceptible to higher bacteria levels after rainfall and associated storm runoff, although that typically impacts bay and river beaches and there has not been any appreciable rain in recent days.
Onshore flow, which has been ongoing for a few days, also pushes in offshore water and keeps near-shore water from flowing adequately out to sea.
DEP spokesman Larry Hajna offered theories to NJ 101.5, including rough surf crashing onto the shoreline and pulling seagull feces into the water where samples were taken and waves breaking up offshore mussel beds, which contain a related bacteria.
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