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EPA Announces $1.1 Million for New England States to Monitor Beaches

Release Date: 03/19/2002
Contact Information: Andrew Spejewski, EPA Press Office (617- 918-1014)

BOSTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that $1.1 million of grants are being made available to New England's five coastal states to protect public health at the region's beaches. The funds are targeted to improve water quality monitoring at beaches and public notification of beach warnings or closures.

"New England's coastal beaches are unmatched for their beauty, but we also have an obligation to make sure they are safe for swimming," said Robert W. Varney, regional administrator of EPA's New England Office. "These grants will go a long way in helping states to boost their monitoring efforts and warn swimmers when specific beaches have pollution problems. Our longer term goal, of course, is to make all of our beaches – both urban beaches and pristine beaches – always safe for swimming."

The available grants to each state are:

Connecticut $226,389
Maine $259,742
Massachusetts $260,691
New Hampshire $204,918
Rhode Island $214,225

Swimming at beaches can pose a health risk if the water is contaminated with disease-causing microorganisms. Typical pollution sources include sewer overflows, malfunctioning septic systems, or stormwater runoff.

During last summer's monitoring season, over 153 saltwater beaches in New England were closed at least one day for a total of more than 374 beach-days, including more than 100 on Cape Cod alone. These totals do not include data from many municipally-managed beaches.

States will use the grants announced today to improve state programs and to fund programs to assist towns and other agencies who manage public beaches. The programs will focus on improving the quality and frequency of water quality testing and ensuring timely notification to the public when swimming conditions are unsafe. The grants may be available for this summer's season. States can also use the funding for the 2003 season.

This year's grants follow last year's first-ever grants to states to develop statewide beach monitoring programs. Each of the states received $58,000 last year. This year the grant amounts are based on criteria, including length of beach season, miles of shoreline and population.