4 Saipan beaches post highest levels of enterococci

Of some 50 beach sites on Saipan, the Puerto Rico Dump, DPW Channel Bridge, Jeffrey’s Beach, and Old Man by the Sea recorded the highest levels of bacteria or enterococci in 2005.

According to the 2006 Water Quality Report by the Division of Environmental Quality, 76 percent of 50 samples collected from Puerto Rico Dump in 2005 contained the bacteria, compared with 2004 when only 41.7 percent of 48 samples from the site showed the presence of enterococci.

The DPW Channel Bridge ranked second with 67.3 percent of 52 samples collected in 2005 having the bacteria—a 34-percent jump from 2004 figures, which were based on 48 samples.

Jeffrey’s Beach and Old Man by the Sea beach sites ranked third in 2005 with at least 50 percent of its samples, 20 and 14, respectively, indicating the presence of the bacteria.

In 2004, Jeffrey’s Beach only scored 15.4 percent violations from at least 26 samples, while Old Man by the Sea only had 20 percent violations from 20 samplings.

The leaders in 2004—Garapan Fishing Dock and Drainage No. 1—scored low this year, with 34.6 and 36.5 percent, respectively. In 2004, the Garapan Fishing Dock ranked first with 56.3 percent violation among the 48 samples collected at the site; Drainage No. 1 had 54.2 percent violations for enterococci.

Sugar Dock had a significant decrease in violations in 2005, with only 13.5 percent of the 52 samples positive for enterococci, compared with the 2004 figures of 52.1 percent from 48 samples.

DEQ director Frank Rabauliman released yesterday the “2006 CNMI 305(b) Water Quality Report,” which contains assessments of all water bodies that DEQ monitors for water quality and biological criteria, including seagrass and coral reefs. He said the integrated 305(b) and 303(d) report describes the methodology used for this water quality evaluation.

Section 305(b) of the federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act) requires that states and territories monitor the quality of their surface and ground waters and produce a report describing the status of their water quality.

Rabauliman said this report is referred to as the 305(b) which will be used by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Congress, and the public to: evaluate whether U.S. waters meet water quality standards; the progress made in maintaining and restoring water quality; and, the extent of remaining problems.

“EPA requires all impaired water bodies, from unknown pollution sources, to be placed on the 303(d) list for further studies leading to remedial actions,” he said through a media release yesterday, adding that the U.S. EPA consolidated assessment and listing methodology categories were used to classify all assessed water bodies in the CNMI during 2004 and 2005.

DEQ, under the Office of the Governor, is responsible for preparing the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) 305(b) report, and subsequent 303(d) listings.

DEQ announced that the report is available for public comments at the CNMI DEQ office in Gualo Rai. The report can be accessed on the DEQ web site address http://www.deq.gov.mp/305b_2006_Final.pdf as a PDF file.

Written comments on the proposed 303(d) list should be sent to DEQ within 30 days of the publication of this notice.

According to the report other than the enterococci bacteria, other microbiological and chemical parameters considered in the report also include: Salinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH level, and turbidity or NTU.

These parameters are monitored on a weekly basis for Saipan West Beaches, and on a monthly and on an eight-week on and off intervals for all other locations, said the report.