POINTS FOR POLICY MAKERS RESEARCH BRIEF - New Coastal Water Quality Model Enables

With the appropriate support government agencies, university research institutes, community scientist groups or NGOs New Coastal Water such as Surfrider Foundation’s Blue Water Task Force would be able to conduct the more intensive water quality data collection and create Quality Model Enables forecast models for their local beaches after a day or two of sampling effort. [...] The benefits of access to water quality predictions, especially term sampling can help resource managers assess water quality, at data-poor beaches where no water quality leading to better informed public health decisions at more beaches. [...] It is estimated that up to 90 million illnesses, costing between $2.2−$3.7 billion annually, can be attributed to poor The model can be used as a framework to guide data-driven modeling efforts of other water quality at beaches in the United States. [...] Although this research focuses on fecal indicator bacteria models, the findings In the United States, routine monitoring of fecal indicator can be applied to other contaminants harmful to bacteria is conducted at nearly 4,000 beaches and when public health and the code is publicly available. [...] A 2018 United the Woods Institute for the Nations report indicated that many beaches around the world are Environment and affiliate of the Program on Water, Health also data-poor with 73% of their 193 member states not monitoring and Development.