"Before you head to the beach this Fourth of July weekend, no doubt you will check the forecast for any impending bad weather. But to avoid some potentially worse spoilers -- such as a bout of diarrhea or a nasty skin rash -- you might also want to consider consulting another report.

According to the National Resource Defense Council's (NRDC) "Testing of the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches" annual survey, the number of beach closures and advisories in the U.S. reached the second-highest level in more than 20 years at 24,091 days.

The report, released Wednesday by the nonprofit environmental organization, notes that 8 percent of monitoring samples from more than 3,000 beaches in 30 coastal and Great Lakes states exceeded public health standards in 2010. In two-thirds of the cases, bacterial contamination was to blame."

Lynne Peeples reports for the Huffington Post June 29, 2011.
[2]
SEE ALSO:

"Beaches to Avoid This July 4th" (Mother Jones) [3]

"Testing the Waters 2011" (NRDC) [4]

"Illinois Beach Water Ranks Among Worst in Nation, Study Finds" (Chicago Sun-Times) [5]

"Contamination Still a Big Problem for U.S. Beaches" (Reuters) [6]

"Report: N.J. Has Second-Best Beach Water Quality in Nation" (Newark Star-Ledger) [7]

"Report: Collies Help Reduce Beach Water Contamination" (Chicago Tribune)
[8]
"Florida's Beaches Rank 6th in Clean Beach Report"(McClatchy/Miami Herald) [9]

"U.S. Polluted Beach Closings, Warnings Spiked in 2010" (ENS) [10]