Beach Water Quality
During the summer months Windsor-Essex County beaches are a great way to relax, cool down, and have some fun. But make sure your day at the beach doesn't become a day at the doctor and check to see if the water is safe to swim in.
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit monitors nine public beaches each week during the summer to make sure that the water is safe for swimming. All public health units across Ontario regularly monitor E. coli levels in beach water. A sign that warns swimmers of possible health risks is posted at a beach when E. coli levels are higher than 100 per 100 ml of water. At these levels swimming isn’t recommended. If the E. coli count is higher than 1000, it’s NOT SAFE to swim and the beach will be CLOSED.
Click here for more infromationThe bacterial counts given reflect the conditions at the time of sampling. Conditions change from day to day depending on the weather conditions and lake levels. The bacterial counts for samples taken Wednesday, September 3, 2008 are as follows:
| June 18 | June 25 | July 2 | July 9 | July 16 | July 23 | July 30 | Aug 6 | Aug 13 | Aug 20 | Aug 27 | Sept 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar Beach - Kingsville |
37 |
293 |
141 |
156 |
525 |
56 |
283 |
94 |
47 |
32 |
95 |
13 |
| Cedar Island Beach - Kingsville |
36 |
134 |
142 |
181 |
202 |
23 |
68 |
73 |
254 |
233 |
146 |
32 |
| Colchester Beach - Essex |
21 |
293 |
199 |
177 |
47 |
14 |
183 |
40 |
203 |
162 |
82 |
40 |
| Hillman Beach - Leamington | 10 | 11 | 191 | 11 | 23 | 14 | 167 | 13 | 91 | 65 | 127 | 16 |
| Holiday Beach - Amherstburg | 20 |
86 |
85 | 127 | 319 | 149 | 516 | 124 | 241 | 499 | 18 | 67 |
| NW Beach - Point Pelee | 73 | 26 | 399 | 320 | 68 | 80 | 655 | 149 | 157 | 11 | 27 | 63 |
| Sandpoint Beach - Windsor | 76 | 131 | 132 | 316 | 39 | 644 | 201 | 295 | 18 | 57 | 70 | 36 |
| Seacliff Beach - Leamington | 23 | 163 | 490 | 397 | 110 | 292 | 390 | 64 | 151 | 98 | 246 | 146 |
| West Belle River Beach - Lakeshore | 417 | 195 | 93 | 10 | 495 | 299 | 21 | 20 | 74 | 242 | 49 | 255 |
Results indicate that Seacliff Beach and West Belle River Beach have high levels of E. coli. Swimming is not recommended at these beaches.
This concludes our beach sampling for the 2008 season. For more information, enter ext. 1100 and ask for the intake inspector between the hours of 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday.
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Please note: - E.coli/ 100ml - 100 or less ( < 100 ) indicates a low health risk (white) |