Thurston County annual BEACH report

Keeping beaches safe

The Beach Environmental Assessment, Communication & Health (BEACH) Program ensures that marine water is safe to swim and play in and informs the public if water doesn't meet swimming standards.

From Memorial Day through Labor Day in 2018, we sampled 62 public high-use beaches statewide, either weekly or biweekly, for enterococcus, a type of fecal bacteria. High enterococcus levels are linked to swimmer illness.

Thurston County saltwater swimming beaches

We monitored two Thurston County beaches weekly. Burfoot County Park and Priest Point Park were sampled weekly from May 21 – Aug. 31, 2018. 

Find details about each of the Thurston County beaches below:

Data summary: Bacteria results compared to standards

The chart below summarizes the bacteria levels at Thurston County beaches in relation to the EPA swimming standard or saltwater swimming criteria. Beaches are considered unsafe for swimming when the geometric mean of enterococcus/100 mL of water is greater than or equal to 35 and the statistical threshold value of enterococcus/100 mL is greater than or equal to 276. We issue a public swimming advisory when enterococcus levels reach 104 per 100 mL of water.

Table: Calculated geometric mean and statistical threshold value at Thurston County beaches (in enterococcus per 100 mL) for 2018

Beach	Geometric Mean	Statistical Threshold Value
Burfoot County Park	11	18
Priest Point Park	11	14