| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4476587 | Marine Pollution Bulletin | 2015 | 8 Pages |
•The enterococci densities at two recreational beaches in Hong Kong exceeded the U.S. EPA recommendation for safe recreational use.•During the same timeframe, these two beaches were classified as ‘Good’ by the EPD's regular monitoring programme.•More enterococci were found in beach sediments than in the water column, and the two pools were correlated suggesting that sediment monitoring is also warranted.•There is a strong need to review the current water monitoring system in Hong Kong to protect public health.
The USEPA and the WHO now advocate the use of enterococci as indicators for marine water quality. This study investigated the outcomes for Hong Kong beach water quality assessment by comparing enterococcus measures with data from the HKEPD's monitoring programme. Six beaches were tested once every 2–3 months from November 2013 to June 2014 in order to identify the most contaminated sites, followed by intensive water sampling in sites found to have the highest enterococci densities (Clear Water Bay Second and Golden) every five to six days for six sampling events over a 30-day period in 2014. The geometric means of enterococci were found to be 124 and 41 cfu/100 mL at Clear Water Bay Second and Golden respectively, indicating that there may be higher risks of illness associated with swimming at both beaches than previously known. Moreover, beach sediments contained higher concentrations of enterococci than water, and warrant further study.
