– Interior Health sometimes closes beaches in late-August –

(OSOYOOS TIMES — July 25, 2007) –

By Chad IngramrnOsoyoos Times

Osoyoos swimmers, sun-tanners and beach bums will be happy to know Interior Health has given the town's beaches a clean bill of health, at least for now.
Its two most popular swimming holes, Gyro Beach and Legion Beach, are being tested throughout the summer for possible contamination.
Ken Christian is Director of Health Protection with Interior Health.
We started (sampling) at the end of June, Christian said. Any closures usually occur towards the end of August, when the water has warmed up.rnHe explained it takes five consecutive samples (five weeks) for a standard to be established, so average levels of possible contaminants have yet to be determined. However, the director made it clear that Osoyoos' beaches are not showing any signs of high-level contamination.
Why are Gyro and Legion beaches on the risk list in the first place?rnWe test beaches on risk assessment, Christian said. Public inspectors review the beach for a certain set of criteria. He explained these criteria include depth, proximity to off-flows (storm drains, etc.) and, perhaps most importantly, use. The director said that Interior Health will generally look at beaches that have an average of more than 100 users a day.
Another risk to beach health, and one that has been a problem for Osoyoos in the past, are geese, or, more accurately, their feces.
They're not as bad as they were last year, but they're still a problem, Christian said. The two problems with geese are that they contaminate the water with feces and they contaminate the beach with feces. If you get an area with a lot of small children playing and they're picking up the feces, it becomes a health risk.rnHe explained that goose droppings, and in fact the droppings of any warm-blooded animal, posses the ability to carry pathogens that cause disease in humans. While Christian said a lot of these diseases are gastrointestinal and perhaps not fatal, they are still unnecessary and unpleasant.
And Canadian geese have no problem with regularity. In fact, according to Interior Health, the average goose drops three pounds of feces per day. An average flock has a population of 100. That means in a year, an average flock produces 54 tonnes of fecal matter.
In 2005, feces hit the fan when it was determined that some 2,000 geese were living in the Osoyoos area. The result was the creation of a goose program for the area. Addling (or shaking) goose eggs ensures they won't hatch, and it appears this method has been effective in controlling the bird's population.
I want to make it clear that we (Interior Health) are not anti-geese people, Christian said, pointing out their interests lie only in the health and safety of B.C. citizens.
The director said that goose droppings, storm and agricultural runoff are the big three contaminants. He said Osoyoos residents can help maintain the safety of their beaches with reason.
Obviously they want to use common sense in dealing with they way they dispose of certain materials, Christian said. He also encourages parents to keep a close eye on their children when playing at the beach.
Parental vigilance is crucial to having a positive experience, he said.