Updated beach water sampling – July 4th

-All E.coli results for community beaches were below the guideline (of less than 200cfu/100ml).

-Komasket – No blue-green algae noticed on shore. Only slightly green along the shoreline, could be a mix of pollen.

Update from FNHA on beach sampling: “Beach sampling tests for the presence of E. coli bacteria, which is commonly found in the feces of warm-blooded animals. Ingestion of E. coli at even small amounts can cause severe gastrointestinal illness such as bloody diarrhea. Due to the health risk posed by E. coli, it is important that FNHA monitor its presence in recreational water in order to ensure that it is safe for all water users.

When we sample for E. coli, FNHA are testing to confirm that it is a below a specific amount depending on the size of the beach in order to be deemed safe.

• E. coli must be on average <200 E.coli/100mL across 5 or more samples, or;
• E. coli must be <400 E. coli/100mL for one sample

The results for the Smitken far left is unusually higher reading that the rest, but the geometric mean for the 5 samples it is below the guidelines of <200cfu/100ml.

FNHA will keep monitoring and see the next round of results. If it is continually showing high E.coli at the one site, then it may be something FNHA would investigate what could be potentially causing the higher count compare to the other sites.”