Taking a dip Labor Day weekend? Swimmers face fecal contamination at beaches along US coastline
August 30, 2025
Thousands of Americans will head to beaches for one last summer splash this Labor Day weekend, and many of them will arrive at beaches where swimming is not advised because of unsafe levels of fecal contamination. Beaches from Crystal River, Florida, to Ogunquit, Maine, were under water quality advisories this week because of elevated levels of bacteria associated with fecal waste. The advisories typically discourage beachgoers from going in the water because the bacteria can cause symptoms including gastrointestinal illness, rashes and nausea. Conservation group Environment America says nearly two-thirds of America’s beaches experienced at least one day in 2024 in which indicators of fecal contamination reached potentially unsafe levels.