Surfers and beach-goers in Ventura County are advised to stay out of the water as of Feb. 5, as predicted storms bring contamination to the county’s shorelines.
Jamie Meier, a representative for the National Weather Service for Los Angeles and Oxnard, expects high-surf warnings to be posted by noon Friday, based on the storm predicted to hit Ventura County this weekend.
According to Meier, high-surf advisories are posted when the surf reaches heights of seven feet or higher. High surf is not only dangerous because of the rough water currents, but also because it contributes to water pollution.
“When you have a high surf, it will stir up the contamination that has settled and bring it up to where people are swimming,” said Meier.
Pollutants from the ocean’s floor are just one of the contributors that put human health at risk as a result of stormy weather.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), storm water runoff has the potential to carry disease-causing bacteria to the ocean and onto the beaches. Contact with ocean water containing storm-water run-off will result in increased risk to human health.
Many illnesses are obtained by bacteria, viruses, poisons and pathogens including gastroenteritis, ear, eye, nose, and throat infections, headaches, fevers, dysentery, hepatitis, cholera, and typhoid fever, so beach-goers are advised to stay out of the water, according to the U.S. EPA.
“Anything that ends up on our streets ends up in the ocean,” said Craig Campbell, a marine biology professor at Moorpark College. “So, it’s a mixture of pesticides and herbicides, as well as animal waste; even runoff from septic tanks.”
Once rainfall has ceased, it takes about 72 hours for the ocean to cleanse itself from pollutants.
“After a storm, you want to wait the two or three days,” Campbell said. “Beaches such as harbors should be avoided because it takes longer for natural cleaning to occur, because there are not enough currents bringing bacteria out and replenishing fresh water back into the area.”
If a person does come into contact with polluted ocean water, there are simple ways to keep from being sick. Richard Hauge, program coordinator for the Ventura County Water Quality Monitoring Program, provided some health tips.
“Wash thoroughly with soap and water,” said Hauge. “Generally 0.2 inches of rain may be enough to create significant runoff conditions.”
There is a 72-hour period after the rains, which is how long Ventura County Beaches take to be safe for beach goers to return to the water.
