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Resources for Recreational Water Quality

Article by Jane Walker, research associate at the Virginia Water Resources Research Center. Illustration by George Wills, Blacksburg, Virginia.

During this season of warm weather and outdoor water recreation, it is particularly important to know and follow healthy behaviors when in contact with water bodies. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines recreational water illnesses as those caused by ingesting, inhaling vapors of, or having contact with contaminated water in swimming pools, water parks, spas, interactive fountains, ponds, lakes, rivers, or oceans (1). This article identifies sources of information on how recreational water users can avoid water-borne illnesses.

1.) Beach Monitoring Activities and Advisories in Virginia

Bacteria levels in Virginia’s beach waters are monitored at 44 public beaches on the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean during the swimming season (May-September). For information about current swimming advisories and monitored beaches in Virginia, beach advisory and monitoring data, links to local beaches, local health department contacts for beach monitoring, and more click here.

To help protect your health, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) recommends that you take these simple steps:

• Observe swimming advisories and do not enter the water at a beach under an advisory;
• Swim well away from fishing piers, pipes and drains, as well as water flowing from storm drains onto a beach;
• Do not dispose of trash, pet waste, or dirty diapers on a beach.

2.) "Beaches and Bacteria"

This article, published in the Virginia Water Central (newsletter of the Virginia Water Resources Research Center), provides information about the causes of beach closures, the regulations and legislation behind them, and the role of bacteria in beach water-quality monitoring. To read this article, please see the August 2004 issue (#31) of Virginia Water Central. Click to download PDF (the article is on pages 11-16).

Topics covered by the article:

• The Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACH) Act
• Virginia’s bacteria standards
• The types of indicator organisms monitored at Virginia’s beaches
• How people responsible for beach closures/advisories decide what is safe
• The difference between a beach advisory and a beach closure
• What it means to close a beach preemptively
• Bacteria Source Tracking

3.) "Safely Enjoying Virginia’s Natural Waters"

This brochure, published by the Virginia Department of Health, focuses on Virginia’s natural waters – its ocean water, bays, rivers, streams and lakes. The brochure describes water quality as it relates to recreational activities and addresses such questions as the following:

• What kinds of organisms are present in natural waters and what are the sources of these organisms?
• Why should we avoid natural waters after a heavy rain?
• What are the health risks associated with recreating in natural waters?
• How is the health risk from natural waters determined?

In addition, the brochure provides advice on ways to safely recreate in natural waters.

The brochure is available online (also available in Spanish)

4.) Regulations for Public Pools and Spas in Virginia

The Virginia Department of Health provides a web page to the chapter in the Virginia Administrative Code (12 VAC 5-462-10 et sec) that governs the posting of water quality results for public swimming pools and spas. The purposes of the regulation are the following:

• Ensure that owners or operators of all public swimming pools post daily water quality test results and water quality standards so that users are informed of pool conditions that affect the public health, welfare, and safety.
• Guide the owner or the agent in the requirements necessary to ensure safe pool maintenance including pH level, disinfectant type and concentration level, and water temperature.
• Establish the recommended standards for the safe and sanitary maintenance of public swimming pools, including the safe levels for pH, chlorine, bromine, and water temperature for spas.

The tables below document the minimum and maximum free chlorine and bromine residuals, pH values, and water temperatures that are to be maintained in Virginia’s public pools and spas (ppm stands for parts per million.)

Water Quality Standards for Public Pools in Virginia

	Minimum	Maximum
Free Residual Disinfectant: Chlorine	1.0 ppm	3.0 ppm
Free Residual Disinfectant: Bromine	2.0 ppm	4.0 ppm
pH	7.2	7.8
Temperature	None	104°F / 40°C (Heated Pools Only)

Water Quality Standards for Public Spas in Virginia

	Minimum	Maximum
Free Residual Disinfectant: Chlorine	2.0 ppm	10.0 ppm
Free Residual Disinfectant: Bromine	2.0 ppm	10.0 ppm
pH	7.2	7.8
Temperature	None	104°F / 40°C

Visit the Virginia Department of Health's Swimming Pool Regulations Governing the Posting of Water Quality Results web page

5.) Healthy Swimming

The CDC developed a Web site for swimmers, pool operators, and public health professionals to provide information about recreational water illnesses and ways to prevent these illnesses.

Topics covered on the site:

• Healthy Swimming A-Z Index
• RWIs: Recreational Water Illnesses
• What, Where, How, Why, Who, How to Prevent
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Health Promotion Materials
• Brochures, Fact Sheets, Podcasts, Posters, Videos/TV
• Training and Education
• Design and Operation Guidelines
• Disinfection and Remediation Guidelines
• Prevention Materials
• Outbreak Response
• Oceans, Lakes, and Rivers
• Disease Tracking/Surveillance
• Resources by State
• References and Resources

New additions to the site include: links to new videos, a pool chemical safety poster, recommendations for preventing pool chemical-associated injuries, “Healthy Swimming” brochure, Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act (February 2009), and more. Also learn information on sun exposure, sunburn, and skin cancer; drowning prevention; safe boating; and more. Visit the CDC web site (also available in Spanish).

References

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Notice to Readers: Recreational Water Illness Prevention Week - May 18--24, 2009.” May 15, 2009 / 58(18); 504. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5818a8.htm (Accessed May 21, 2009).
2. Virginia Department of Health. “Beach Monitoring.” http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/epidemiology/DEE/BeachMonitoring
   (Accessed May 21, 2009).
   

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