Posted by Steve Herbert on February 16, 2001 at 22:01:52:
I may have posted this previously, but it's worth repeating. LA County Public Health has a webpage listing 52 ocean sites within Los Angeles county where water quality samples are taken. Many, but not all, are taken daily and today 24 of these sites have a red circle next to their listing indicating that the sample Exceeds State Bacterialogical Water Safety Standards. Simply put, swiming at these locations could make you sick.
If you dive from shore, near shore or are an instructor who takes classes from shore, this is a VALUABLE resource to regularly check with, much more so than Heal The Bay's popular Report Card. The site can be reached directly at http://www.lapublichealth.org/eh/progs/EnvirP/rechlth/ehrecocdata.cfm
The Sand Eaters have featured it as one of it's primary links and you can get to it perhaps a bit easier at www.geocites.com/sandeaters
Note: there can be up to 3 days of delay from when the sample is taken before the results are read and posted to the page, but it's the closest thing we have to near real-time water quality information and is helpful. The page is updated 5 days a week and occasionally on Saturday when there is cause to do so.
-=>Steve<=-