For Immediate Release
June 30, 2003

Contact: Pat Markley
(714) 834-2178

Unparalleled Water Quality Lab Opens at Shellmaker Island

(Santa Ana) - The first dedicated County Public Health Department Water Quality Laboratory in California opened today at Shellmaker Island in Newport Back Bay. This facility is responsible for testing water samples to protect the public from exposure to ocean and bay water that may be contaminated with sewage or may cause illness due to elevated bacteria levels.

“We are extremely proud of our new lab that is totally dedicated to water quality testing and research,” said Health Care Agency Director Julie Poulson. “It will allow for faster turnaround of water samples since it is closer to the coast and samples arrive more quickly. It is also designed so that it can absorb a workload 2 to 4 times of previous routine processing. This allows for expanded testing to support other County Departments and performing extensive watershed/research studies.”

Five full time employees will staff the laboratory that is certified by California Department of Health Services to test drinking and recreational water. The Orange County Board of Supervisors and the health care community took a major leadership role in supporting the lab by approving $1.23 Million from Tobacco Settlement funds that are being held in trust for a permanent Water Quality Laboratory at the future Marine Studies Center.

According to the EPA Office of Water, only a few states in the country have comprehensive beach monitoring programs to test the safety of water for swimming. Many states have limited programs and some have no monitoring programs linked to swimming beaches. There is still limited information about safety of swimming at beaches across the country, which is why further studies are needed.