Wisconsin Beach Monitoring Program

The WDNR offers grant support to communities along Lake Michigan and Lake Superior to monitor beach water for elevated E.coli levels. This information helps the community health officials notify the public so beach visitors can make informed choices about how to use the beach! For more information about Wisconsin’s Beach Program, visit the Beach Health Website.

2006 is the fourth year for the successful Wisconsin Beach Program. In 2003, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, in cooperation and collaboration with local, state and federal authorities, began implementation of the federal BEACH (Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health) Act of 2000. The BEACH Act is an amendment to the Clean Water Act requiring all coastal states, including Great Lakes states, to develop programs for effective water quality monitoring and public notification at coastal recreational beaches. The US Environmental Protection Agency has made grants available to participating states to develop and implement a statewide beach program.

Program Information

• A Guide to Great Lakes Water Quality for Wisconsin Beach Visitors [PDF 0.99KB]
• Beach Monitoring Requirements [PDF 392KB]
• 2007 Beach Sanitary Survey Report [PDF 11.9MB]
• 2007 Annual Report to EPA [PDF 300KB]
  This report also contains the most current list of both beach monitoring priorities and county allocations.

Contact Information

For questions about the BEACH Act and Wisconsin DNR's Beach Monitoring Program contact:

Shaunna Chase
(608)266-2554