Oregon will likely see a lot more advisories for beach bacteria in the future, but it's not because the state is finding more bacteria. It's actually lowering the bar for issuing an advisory.
Water samples that fluoresce, indicate the presence of bacteria in the ocean.
Oregon Beach Monitoring Program
Currently, Oregon issues a beach advisory when there are 158 colony forming units of bacteria per 100 milliliters of ocean water because swimmers ccould swallow the bacteria and get sick.
But Tara Chetock with the Oregon Beach Monitoring Program said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency looked into that 158 level and found problems.
"Essentially they found that people were still becoming ill from bacteria exposure that had levels of bacteria lower than 158," she said.
Starting in 2017, the state is considering issuing advisories at 70 colony forming units instead.
Looking at historical data, that level would have led to 50 percent more beach advisories.
The state doesn’t have to change the level, but if it doesn’t, it won’t be eligible to apply for certain federal grants.