Study reveals millions are contracting illnesses from the ocean

I am sick of writing articles about our polluted ocean. Usually, I write one article a year on the subject, but when a recent study concluded that over a MILLION people per year get sick from pollution at California beaches, I got sick to my stomach and started writing.
Researchers at UCLA and Stanford prepared a study that examined illnesses at dozens of the nation's most popular beaches, spanning 100 miles of shore in Southern California. It is estimated that nearly 80 million visitors recreate in those waters annually, including surfers like you and me.
Results reveal that between 627,800 and 1,479,200 cases of gastrointestinal illness occur at the beaches every year. The illness causes stomach cramps, diarrhea and vomiting. But the study did not account for eye, ear and nose infections, which are the sicknesses most closely associated with surfing or swimming in polluted water.
One of the more surprising findings of the study is that the healthcare costs for beach-pollution illnesses are estimated to range from $21 million to $414 million annually. Those estimates include money lost from sick time at work and costs for medical treatment or doctor visits. However, the study did not account for the amount of money lost to the local economy from people who decide not to come back to the beach.
The common perception is that surfers are the major group of people who contract illnesses from ocean pollution because during the winter, rains wash a toxic cocktail of oil, fertilizers, animal feces, litter, and other pollutants down storm drains and into the ocean. However, the recent study shows that the largest amount of people visit the ocean during the summer, and with the larger crowds comes increased chances of lots of people getting sick.

BAND-AID SOLUTION FOR A GUNSHOT WOUND

In order to comply with Federal Clean Water Act standards, Regional Water Quality Control Boards have tried to impose tougher laws and regulations against sole source polluters and aggregators of urban runoff, such as developers whose new constructions are increasing the amount of pavement across San Diego.
Local government officials, and other opponents, have always complained the regulations require expensive actions, such as installing retention devices on storm drains and increasing street sweeping. All of which comes without funding to pay for it, leaving them to consider cutting other services to fund clean water actions or passing the costs to the customers.
Environmentalists have sued the government to impose stricter laws and the polluters have appealed to lessen the laws. It is a back and forth legal battle that is taking years to play out. Meanwhile, millions of surfers and beach-goers are getting sick.
Although the laws imposed by the governments might improve a portion of the water quality, the biggest polluters are your average, everyday people, including the beach-goers who are, in the end, contracting the illnesses. That is why the stricter laws will most likely patch a gunshot wound with a band-aid. It may slow the bleeding, but the bullet will not be removed.

POUNDING SAND

The most effective way to adequately address the ocean pollution issue is to increase and improve the educational efforts about urban runoff. Currently, the City of San Diego is running radio and TV commercials about urban runoff but they are running them at odd times as Public Service Announcements and, as is the nature of a PSA, the audience does not recognize that the message applies to them.
Environmental organizations such as San Diego Baykeeper, WiLDCOAST and Surfrider Foundation all have their own individual programs aimed at combating dirty water through school education lectures, water testing efforts, and handouts at informational booths set up at community events. These efforts are relatively effective, but for the most part the message usually falls on the ears of people who are already members of the organizations.
The nature of urban runoff is similar to a colony of ants. Alone, one small ant does not do much, but when the pollution from all the ants is put together, it adds up to be a dangerous force. In much the same way, surfers are like ants. The difference though is that the surfer can be selfish. However, when we find out that millions of people per year are getting sick from enjoying the ocean, we need to recognize that it will take a colony to fix the problem.

 A FUN WAY TO TAKE A STAND

For 15 years, the Surfrider Foundation has been holding an event to raise awareness about polluted water called the “Paddle For Clean Water.” The Paddle is a gathering of ocean lovers at Ocean Beach Pier to rally in support of the current efforts to clean up the ocean and to push for increased efforts.
The Paddle is a non-competitive gathering where participants grab any flotation device to paddle or swim around the OB Pier together, at the same time. Media and politicians are invited to witness over a thousand people participate in hopes that preventing ocean pollution will resonate and affect the contemporary political climate and government policies.
After learning that millions of people are suffering and millions of dollars are being wasted because of ocean pollution, this year it will be all the more important to have a large number of people at this event. If surfers can’t speak up for the ocean, who will? I’ll see you at the Paddle… it’s on Sunday, September 17 at 8:30 a.m.