LAGUNA BEACH : Surfrider Says Beach Water Is Unhealthful

Maintaining that recent water tests at two popular beaches show bacteria counts that could make swimmers ill, members of the Surfrider Foundation will take their case to the City Council on Tuesday and recommend ways to address the problem.

In a letter to the council, foundation members say they test the waters at six swimming areas and that “people have a right to know” about the outcome.

According to test results printed in a recent Surfrider Foundation newsletter, the bacterial count is “usually above the safe level for human contact” at the popular Main Beach and Aliso Beach.

“Our tests have shown it’s dirtier than the county’s tests have shown,” said Tex Haines, who as a Surfrider Foundation leader has helped monitor the bacteria count in local waters for years.

Before Orange County’s Dec. 6 bankruptcy filing, health officials monitored the local waters weekly. Because of the financial crisis, however, the testing was halted in February.

Before then, the results showed the waters were safe for swimmers except after sewer spills or heavy rains, said Robert E. Merryman, director of the Environmental Health division of the county’s Health Care Agency.

Merryman said he could not comment on the Surfrider Foundation’s test results because “I don’t even know what protocol they follow.”

The county continues to test the waters after sewer spills and closes the beaches when necessary, Merryman said. The beach at the end of Jasmine Street was closed after a 1,000-gallon sewer spill Monday, he said, and reopened Thursday.

His organization is recommending that the city place signs with details about the risks.