(Wahpeton)– The head of the Okoboji Protective Association is speaking out in favor of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ new system of monitoring for bacteria at state park beaches.
While some are criticizing the system as being too lax, others, like Jane Shuttleworth, President of the Okoboji Protective Association, say the new system makes more sense than the one in place a year ago. Shuttleworth says the new system is based on testing conducted a 30-day period. Under the system, a beach is listed as impaired if there are consistent readings over a five week period that indicate a high level of contamination.
The former system listed a beach as impaired if it had just one reading that tested high.
Shuttleworth says the new system is better because the test results are based over a longer period of time. She says the bacteria have a short lifespan, and that their numbers can vary a lot over a short period of time.
Shuttleworth admits there have been periodic spikes in bacteria levels at several lakes area beaches this summer…including Gull Point, Triboji Beach and Pike’s Point. She says they’re looking into the cause.
