STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
Phil Bryant, GOVERNOR
MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Trudy D. Fisher, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Robbie Wilbur
March 2, 2013 601/961-5277
MDEQ Issues Water Contact Advisories For Several Locations
(JACKSON, Miss.) -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
(MDEQ), through its Beach Monitoring Program, issued water contact
advisories Saturday for three sampling stations. These segments of beach
are not closed; however, there may be an increased risk of illness
associated with swimming in these areas.
MDEQ is working closely with local officials to advise residents that the
water in the following locations may have high bacteria levels:
●Station 7A -- Long Beach -- from Oak Gardens east to Girard.
●Station 14 -- Front Beach -- from the Yacht Club east to the end of
Jackson Avenue.
●Station 15 ? Shearwater -- from Weeks Bayou to Ashley.
Advisories were also issued March 1 for these locations:
●Station 10 -- Gulfport Central -- from Alfonso Drive east to the old VA
entrance.
●Station 5 -- Pass Christian West ? from Fort Henry Avenue east to Elliot
Street.
●Station 6 -- Pass Christian Central ? from Henderson Avenue east to Heirn
Avenue.
When water samples show that levels are safe for human contact, the
advisories will be lifted. The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, which
performs water sampling of the Mississippi Gulf Coast beaches for MDEQ,
notifies the agency when an area has returned to acceptable levels.
Additionally, swimmers are reminded that the Beach Task Force has a
standing recommendation that swimming not occur during or within 24 hours
of a significant rainfall event.
More information on the Mississippi Beach Monitoring Program:
http://www.usm.edu/gcrl/msbeach/index.cgi.
To receive beach advisories directly, send an email to
rwilbur@deq.state.ms.us for inclusion in a public group email list, text
"beach" to 601-863-8082,
or follow MDEQ on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/MDEQ.
# # #
MDEQ has set up a texting group for media on the Gulf Coast. If you would
like to be on the list and receive info via text, then text "coastmedia" to
601-863-8082, or follow MDEQ on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/#!/MDEQ
Mr. Robbie Wilbur
Communications Director
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
Post Office Box 2261
Jackson, Mississippi 39225
601/961-5277
601/421-5699 (c)
601/961-5715 (f)
rwilbur@deq.state.ms.us
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