AN OVERABUNDANCE of caution on the part of state health officials leads to scores of unnecessary beach closures each season. That could change as early as this summer, under a new and sensible water testing proposal from the state Bureau of Environmental Health.
Currently, bathers depend on a flag system to determine water quality. Blue flags fly on beaches deemed safe for swimming, while red flags indicate unacceptable levels of bacteria. But the usefulness of such a system is limited by the 24-hour turnaround needed to evaluate the daily water sample. Basically, a bather looking at a red flag today would be making a decision based on yesterday’s results. And people, for the most part, would be worried over nothing. Thirteen years of state data showed that approximately 80 percent of beach closings occur on days when the water is perfectly acceptable for swimming.
Wisely, state health regulators propose to keep beaches open unless water samples from two consecutive days show elevated levels of bacteria. It’s a smart solution that should prevent about 200 beach closings this summer. Beaches with stubborn bacteria problems, such as Wollaston in Quincy and King in Lynn, would still be required to close after a single sample showing unacceptable levels of bacteria.
The $5 billion cleanup of Boston Harbor utterly transformed the water’s edge. People can swim without a second thought at most beaches from Nantasket to Winthrop. The new water sampling proposal simply reflects that refreshing situation.