You can find out the track record of monitored beaches you visit regularly or while on vacation by searching the database.
To get started, select one of 30 coastal and Great Lakes states that have monitored beaches. Next, you'll see a state summary page, showing you the number of monitored beaches, the frequency of monitoring, and total closures and advisories in 2006. You'll also get brief summaries of beach water quality issues for each state from the Natural Resources Defense Council and state governments.
You also can look at the records for individual beaches by choosing a county. You'll only see counties with beaches. You can find a beach by entering part of its name in the search form.
Reports for most monitored beaches will include maps from Google. The points shown on the map typically depict a monitoring station for the beach. There may be several.
You can learn more about beach water quality issues in the NRDC's annual report, Testing the Waters 2007. You also can download the complete report as a PDF document.
Learn about water quality at more than 50 popular beaches by clicking the umbrellas on the map below, which includes information compiled by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Gannett News Service. Zoom in on different parts of the map by using the controller on the left side of the map.
Select a state from the drop-down menu below to explore water-quality reports for more beaches.