Florida warns of ‘fecal water pollution’ at two MORE popular beaches

Floridians have been warned about ‘fecal pollution’ in the waters around two popular beaches – just months after seven other beaches were contaminated.

Residents and visitors are urged to stay out of Midtown Beach and Dubois Park in Jupiter, the northernmost city in Palm Beach County.

The water turned out to contain high levels of enterococcal bacteria, which can cause urinary tract infections in people who go swimming during the advisory.

The bacteria can also lead to it meningitis, which is caused by a viral infection, and fatal blood infections such as sepsis, which can end in organ failure and death.

‘After a poor outcome at the beach, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) contacts local water and wastewater utilities to identify any operational failures, such as sewage spills, that may have contributed to the poor beach water quality and reports the results of their investigation to DOH -Palm Beach,” a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Health told DailyMail.com.

‘The advisories will be withdrawn once enterococcal levels have fallen to acceptable levels.’

The sample taken from the beaches contained 201 colonies per 100 millimeters of water sampled – a sample is considered ‘bad’ if the results show 70.5 parts per 100.

The fecal contaminants, called enterococcal bacteria, are found in the intestinal tracts of mammals, including dogs and humans who are regularly stranded.

“If they are present in high concentrations in recreational water and are ingested while swimming or enter the skin through a cut or sore, they can cause illness, infections or skin rashes in humans,” the spokesperson said.

The Florida Department of Health issued the advisory on April 30 in response to test results received the day before.

“The presence of enterococcal bacteria is an indication of fecal pollution, which can come from stormwater runoff, domestic and wild animals, and human sewage,” the department said.

The advice should remain in place until levels reach at least 35 colonies per 100 millimeters, but officials cannot ban people from entering the water.

Officials have not revealed how the bacteria made its way along the coast, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted that sources could include wastewater treatment plant effluent, leaking septic systems, stormwater runoff, sewage discharges or pet and wildlife waste .

The Florida Department of Health issued another warning in March when the bacteria was discovered on seven Palm beaches.

The sample taken at Midtown Beach formed 201 colonies per 100 millimeters of water sampled – a sample is considered ‘bad’ if the results show 70.5 parts per 100.

Residents and visitors are urged to stay away from the contaminated waters as the bacteria can cause urinary tract infections and meningitis and lead to sepsis if left untreated. The photo shows Jupiter Dubois Park, where fecal pollution was found

The beaches affected were Carlin Park in Jupiter, Riviera Beach in Riviera Beach, Phil Foster Park in Riviera Beach, Lake Worth-Kreusler in Lake Worth, Ocean Inlet Park in Ocean Ridge, Sandoway-Delray Beach in Delray Beach and Spanish River in Boca. Raton.

However, in 2023 the state saw levels in some canals shoot 150 times above safe levels after record flooding in April.

Miami Waterkeeper, a nonprofit organization, discovered a day after the historic rainfall that water collected from the city’s canals contained excess levels of enterococcal bacteria — in some cases up to 144 times the healthy limit.

The record levels of rainfall lead to record levels of bacteria.

Aliza Karim, water quality specialist at the nonprofit, said South Florida Sun-Sentinel: ‘The results on the 13th are the highest recorded in the past two years in some locations. We’ve never seen so many sites over 1,000 fail.”

She added: ‘I would not recommend contact with the water. Boating should be fine, but I wouldn’t recommend fishing, or any form of interaction with the water, until the bloom has subsided.’

Natalia Soares Quinete, a chemist at Florida International University who researches water pollution, told the local newspaper: “Even without flooding, the canals can already contain high concentrations of coliform (bacteria).”

She said: ‘These levels are a good indication of the likely overflow of septic tanks. You have a lot of septic tanks in South Florida, and some of them fail, but even the good ones can overflow with this water.”

Ms Quinete said flood water in parks, where dog and human feces are found, also ends up in rivers.