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Clean Beaches Council Releases Annual List of Clean and Healthy Beaches (Washington, DC) – The Clean Beaches Council released its annual list of beaches which have been officially certified as clean, healthy and environmentally well managed. The announcement was made as families and beach-lovers around the country prepare to flock to the beach This year, beaches in ten states, Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin, are on the list. (See complete list below.) "The summer travel season is expected to be stronger than it has been in years, according to the Travel Industry Association of America, and beaches are one of the most popular destinations," stated Walter McLeod, President of the Clean Beaches Council. "Even though millions of Americans spend time at beaches, there is still no easy way to determine which are clean and well managed. Our program is the only one of its kind that helps vacationers select beaches that don't pose a serious health risk and are also managed to protect the environment and beach wildlife." The Clean Beaches Council presented Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida with the organization's first annual "Best Beach Management Project" award. Fort Lauderdale is launching two pilot projects that will test replenishing the area's erosion-prone shoreline with "sand" made from ground-up recycled glass bottles. (Glass and sand are composed of similar materials.) "This beach management project represents the kind of innovative, outside-the-box thinking that we need to assure the sustainability of our beaches," stated McLeod. "Certainly, there is still a great deal of research to be done, particularly on the impacts of glass-generated sand on wildlife. But these two experiments offer an opportunity to find a cost-effective, environmentally smart solution to the widespread erosion that most of the nation's beaches are now experiencing. Rather than having to mine the ocean for sand to replace eroded areas, we can use what is recycled right in our back yards. This solution may be a win-win." Currently, 21 miles of the 23 miles of Broward County's beaches -- including Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Dania, Deerfield, and Hollywood -- are critically eroded. The project, if successful, would solve several environmental problems: 1) expand the shrinking market for recycled glass, 2) help communities re-nourish their beaches without importing expensive sand from faraway places, and 3) mitigate the need to excavate ocean sand which destroys marine ecosystems. Now in its sixth year, the non-profit Clean Beaches Council runs the most comprehensive, national environmental and public safety beach certification program in the country. For the public, the program provides a 'good housekeeping' stamp of approval for beaches, giving visitors an enjoyable vacation and peace of mind. For beach communities, it is an 'eco-label' which means the beach has met a set of rigorous health and safety standards and is managed to protect the natural environment. In order to be certified, applicants must meet the program's criteria for water quality, beach and intertidal conditions, safety, services, habitat conservation, erosion management, public information and education. Beaches that meet these criteria receive the Blue Wave flag, the symbol of the program, which is prominently displayed beachside. The Clean Beaches Council has certified the following Blue Wave beaches around the country: |
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2004 BLUE WAVE BEACHES |
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