Health & Fitness
Somers Point Has NJ's 11th Dirtiest Beach, Report Says
The beach at New Jersey Avenue had 'potentially unsafe' water on three of 17 testing days last year, according to the report.
SOMERS POINT, NJ — One Somers Point beach's waters present some of the greatest risk of exposure to sewage or other fecal contamination among New Jersey beaches, according to a new report.
At the beach off New Jersey Avenue, water testing levels of potentially dangerous bacteria exceeded safe water standards in three of the 17 testing days in the new "Safe for Swimming" report by Environmental New Jersey. That made it New Jersey's 11th most "potentially unsafe" swimming beach, based on the percentage of testing days with potentially unhealthy water.
The Somers Point beach was among eight in the top 11 that had multiple associated testing sites, which can affect the number of potentially unsafe days.
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The environmental group analyzed data of fecal bacteria from beaches in 29 states and Puerto Rico. The study indicated that 386 — or about one-eighth — of the beaches surveyed were potentially unsafe on at least 25 percent of the days when sampling occurred.
In New Jersey, 73 of 222 beaches tested were potentially unsafe for at least one day last year.
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Here are the average percentages of potentially unsafe sampling days in 2019 for beaches in New Jersey counties:
- Cape May County: 5 percent, 69 beaches tested
- Ocean County: 5 percent, 60 beaches tested
- Monmouth County: 5 percent, 45 beaches tested
- Atlantic County: 1 percent, 48 beaches tested
The state requires that officials issue a swimming advisory when a sample indicates the concentration of the indicator bacteria, enterococci, exceeds state standards of 104 colonies per 100 milliliters.
Beaches are closed when their water exceeds the threshold on two straight days and remain in place until the water's bacteria tests below the standard.
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