FOLW                                                                       “Promoting a healthy Lake Wingra through an active watershed community.”

         

EMPACT Beach Study

The Madison Department of Public Health (MDPH) with partners from the City of Madison Information Services, State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH), US Geological Survey (USGS), the University of Wisconsin Health Services, the University Extension, and the community, including the Friends of Lake Wingra (FOLW), worked on a US Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) grant-funded comprehensive water quality monitoring program at three Madison lakes.

 

Over a 2-year period, beginning in the summer of 2002, the project extensively studied beach water quality for physical, microbial and weather-related factors.  Automated, remote-monitoring instruments collected real-time data on rainfall, wind speed and direction, air and water temperature, turbidity, and chlorophyll contents.  The MDPH collected water samples for a battery of fecal indicators (fecal coliform, E.coli, enterococci). WSLH conducted pathogen testing (E. coli 0157:H7 , Salmonella, Cryptosporidium and Giardia) using cutting-edge technologies. The project also used coliphage samples to determine the source of fecal contamination. Relationships between microbial indicator data, occurrence of pathogens, and meteorological, physical and water quality data were evaluated to create a predictive model for real-time assessment of the risk of occurrence and beach closure decisions.

 

What Is Different about the New Study?

The Madison Department of Public Health has developed beach-closing criteria based on testing results and physical observations at the beach sites. However, there is a concern that the criteria may not accurately reflect the actual level of health risk to swimmers since the relationship between disease-causing organisms, such as E. coli O157:H7, and indicator bacteria has never been shown. There is a need to gather data to improve the use of these indicators as accurate predictors and make timely beach information available to the public.

 

The EMPACT project focused on predicting the risk and helping to understand when beach closuring is advisable.  Expansion of the current beach-monitoring program included:

• Use of improved indicators to show changes in the quality of the beach water, including the use of innovative technologies to show the difference between human and animal sources of waste.
• Development of a method for the detection of E. coli 0157:H7 in recreational waters.
• Testing for disease-causing organisms, including Giardia, Cryptosporidia, and Salmonella.
• Determination of the link between bacterial indicators, occurrence of pathogens, weather, and other factors.
• Construction of mathematical models for predicting pathogen occurrence.
• Development of partnerships with community groups and agencies to allow distribution of water quality data and beach closure decisions, including construction of a searchable water quality World Wide Web database for the public.

 

  

 

Public Communication Relating to Beach Water Quality

The program yielded data for beach users’ protection to be distributed on a new website. The resulting will help improve tools to identify early indicators of health risks from pathogenic organisms and help define beach conditions through data-based decision-making.

 

Signs (English y en Español) will be posted at the beaches

Website (English y en Español):

Hotline:  608-294-5356Radio: water quality announcements