Six public Iowa beaches will bear ‘swimming not recommended’ warning signs, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The beaches showed high levels of E.Coli, which is an indicator of other potentially harmful bacteria in the water.

Affected Beaches

The affected beaches include Backbone Beach in Delaware County, Black Hawk Beach in Sac County, Clear Lake State Park Beach in Cerro Gordo County, Crandalls Beach in Dickinson County, Emerson Bay Beach in Dickinson County, and Lake Darling Beach in Washington County, which also tested high for algal toxin.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources tests 40-some beaches each week between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend. The goal is to ensure that the public knows what’s in the water before they decide whether or not they’re going to recreate.

According to Adam Schneiders, the Water Quality Resource Coordinator for the State Natural Resources Department, the DNR sends out crews to dozens of state parks each week during the summer. They literally wade into waterways to check for bacteria like E.Coli and microcystin.

The DNR site on beaches is updated by Friday mornings in the summer. Iowans are advised to check the website before heading out to the beaches.

Original reporting: KCCI Des Moines — read the source article.