Fecal bacteria plagues some South Florida waterways and beaches, reports find

Along with seaweed and schools of fish, some Florida beaches are home to another living organism – fecal-indicator bacteria.

A series of water quality reports reveal how Miami-Dade’s aging sewage infrastructure, stormwater runoff and other pollutants have allowed recreational waters to become hotspots for harmful bacteria.

Over 900 billion gallons of untreated sewage end up in water across the U.S. every year, says a report by Surfrider Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting oceans and beaches. Along with 10 trillion gallons of stormwater runoff, dust, oil, waste and chemicals pour into waterways that can potentially harm visitors and aquatic life.

Surfrider Foundation’s annual Clean Water Report found three Florida beaches are among the nation’s top ten bacteria hot spots. The report was conducted with the help of the foundation’s Blue Water Task Force, which consists of volunteers who collect 100 mL water samples to be processed in labs across the country.

The three Florida beaches with over 60 percent of samples containing high levels of bacteria are Ballard Park in Melbourne, Park View Kayak Launch in Miami Beach and Margaret Pace Park on Biscayne Bay. Both Park View and Ballard Park have made the top 10 of the report’s Beach Bacteria Hot Spots list since 2021.

“Our sampling plans are designed to support or help fill in the gaps left by the agency-run beach monitoring programs,” said Jaime LeDuc, the Blue Water Task Force Manager at Surfrider.

The samples were tested for enterococcus bacteria, which is found in the digestive systems of warm-blooded animals. If present in the samples, it’s an indicator of fecal pollution in the water, which is often caused by stormwater runoff, aging sewage infrastructure or by not cleaning up after pets.

At Ballard Park, 76 percent of samples collected had a high bacteria rate. At Margaret Pace Park, 64 percent had bacteria, while Park View Kayak Launch reached a high bacteria rate of 92 percent, the third highest in the country. Park View also has had a no-contact water advisory since March 2020, but the report found that visitors still kayak on its waters.

The consistent exposure to bacteria in recreational water can pose risks to visitors, especially those who are immunocompromised. LeDuc said reactions can include flu-like symptoms, diarrhea, nausea, ear and eye infections and rashes.

To better protect themselves, LeDuc advises residents to “know before they go.” They can turn Surfrider’s to database or local beach monitoring agencies’ data. She believes beachgoers should treat checking bacteria levels like checking for water temperature and tides before setting up on the sand.

“That should just be intertwined into what you’re thinking about when you go to the beach,” LeDuc said.

Biscayne Bay Report Card

The release of the foundation’s report coincides with the Miami-Dade County Department of Environmental Resources Management’s release of the Biscayne Bay Report Card, which evaluates water quality and habitat health in Biscayne Bay. Omar Abdelrahman, senior section manager of the water resources section at DERM, said the report card averages parameters such as nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen, bacteria, chlorophyll-a, water clarity and submerged aquatic vegetation to determine the overall health of the bay.

This year’s report card found multiple areas of concern along the bay and its canals. Abdelrahman cites a series of causes, most identical to Surfrider’s report, from canals picking up contaminants from groundwater and stormwater to dog feces making it into the water.

Some areas of the bay have consistent signs of nutrient loading from fertilizer spill off that can lead to algae blooms, which decrease water quality and suffocate aquatic life.

“When you fertilize your lawn, the grass grows. When you fertilize the bay, you get algae growing,” Abdelrahman said.

Most areas of Biscayne Bay fall under the report card’s fair range, meaning they have degrading water quality and habitat health. However, North Biscayne Bay has multiple poor areas with considerable ecological degradation where “essential ecological functions and species diversity are impacted and not able to perform beneficial functions at optimum levels,” according to the report card.

Loren Parra, DERM director and chief resilience officer for Miami-Dade County, advises residents and tourists to clean up after themselves to better the health of the waterways. Keeping lawn clippings out of storm drains or not using fertilizer during rainy seasons can help keep aquatic life healthy and prevent more contaminants from potentially impacting recreational waters, she said.

“Whether you’re in the uplands out west, or you’re near the water, the whole system is connected,” Parra said.

The team behind the report card is seeing small wins, such as an increase in seagrass in North Biscayne Bay. But more needs to be done to ensure the long-term improvement of water quality along Biscayne Bay is visible in the data years down the road.

Fecal bacteria is persistent

Adriana González Fernández, the science and research director at Miami Waterkeeper, a non-profit that advocates for clean South Florida waters, wants residents to understand that while fecal-indicator bacteria suggest fecal waste may be present in the water, it doesn’t mean there was recent fecal pollution. The bacteria persist in the environment.

“High levels of bacteria don’t necessarily mean that you’re going to get sick,” Fernández said. “But there are increased odds.”

But not every sample location is the same, she said. Each body of water has different characteristics. An open beach has more dilution compared to an enclosed canal; fresh water contains different bacterial indicators than marine water. The data acts as a snapshot of the water at that moment in time, and specific parameters need to be measured.

“The more data you have, the more trends you can see in time,” she said.

That doesn’t mean water enthusiasts shouldn’t be aware of what’s going on beneath the surface. They can turn to sites like Swim Guide to determine if kayaking, swimming or diving is worth the risk. Visitors can also contact Miami Waterkeeper if they notice any concerning contaminants in the water, such as oil spills.