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Sewage and sand
by Bob Kelleher, Minnesota Public Radio
July 23, 2003

Warning signs are placed on public beaches when bacteria counts reach unacceptable levels. People are urged to stay away from the water until bacteria drops below the dangerous level. (MPR Photo/Bob Kelleher)

A new monitoring program has revealed what may be a chronic problem for Duluth beaches - nasty germs. Two beaches were posted Tuesday for unsafe levels of bacteria in the water. So far, Duluth beaches have been posted seven times this summer. It's not certain where the bacteria is coming from -- but a spate of large sewage spills is one possible source.

Duluth, Minn. — Stephanie Love could tell right away something was wrong as she drove her canoe-topped car to the St. Louis River. The morning air was rich -- and not with wildflowers.

"We smelled the sewage before we got there," says Love. "We asked what was going on, and they said there was going to be a sewage release within the hour. Had we not stopped, we would have put in and we would have been paddling in sewage."

	MPCA technician Melisa Rauner

A rusted pipe dumped one million gallons of raw sewage into the river. It was just one of several big sewage spills in the Duluth area this month. Two days later nearly 200,000 gallons spilled, and another three million gallons spilled last Saturday night.

Maybe coincidentally, it's been a bad summer for Duluth beaches. A new program to monitor swimming water quality has revealed some big spikes in dangerous bacteria.

Thirty-four beaches are being monitored this summer, from north of Grand Marais, and south to Duluth's Boy Scout landing on the St Louis River.

That's where Melisa Rauner is wading, about five feet from shore, in high camouflage boots and blue rubber gloves. She's dipping small glass bottles into the tea-colored water.

"We are looking for E. coli and fecal coliform bacteria in the water," says Rauner.

Those bacteria indicate human or animal waste is getting into the river. And they can make people sick.

	Boy Scout Landing

"There's a safe level and there are unsafe levels, so we're looking for unsafe levels," says Rauner. "If there are unsafe levels we are going to post a sign here at the beach, telling folks that it's not safe to have contact with the water."

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Beach Monitoring Program is barely two months old. The water's been fine along Lake Superior's North Shore. But in Duluth, there have been problems.

"We were a little surprised," Rauner says. "We are still a little surprised."

July has brought Duluth a series of heavy rainfalls. The rush of water can overwhelm Duluth's sanitary sewers. A pungent mix of rainwater and raw sewage bursts from manholes and rolls downhill to the nearest body of water.

Overflows happen in many cities, according to Kurt Soderburg, director of the Duluth-based Western Lake Superior Sanitary District. But they're quickly evident on Duluth's rocky hillsides.

"We're unique in that we're so close to the river," Soderburg says. "There is no forgiveness in these systems. Here, with such steep topography, the water is coming down the hill all the time, and we're seeing the overflow at the bottom. There just is no forgiveness at all."

	Boat Club Landing beach

The district has suffered a string of bad luck. There was the rusted connector pipe, while power outages at pumping stations caused two more of the larger overflows.

Heidi Bauman directs the Duluth MPCA's Beach Monitoring program.

"Duluth really isn't any different than a lot of big cities that have problems with sanitary and storm overflows during big storms," says Bauman.

Bauman can't prove that sewage is spoiling the beaches. There are old septics, porta-potties that get knocked over, dogs, and even seagulls.

"I've heard that seagull feces is very strong," she says. "We have a lot of geese that live in the area. Some of the sites have a lot of geese that live at them."

	Launching boats on a polluted beach

Three beaches on the river and Duluth harbor have been posted -- two of them twice. Several more have been posted across the bay in Superior, Wisconsin. Two of Duluth's contaminated beaches were on Lake Superior. Bauman says that was a little unexpected.

"I guess I was kind of under the assumption that everyone else was at, that our beaches are clean and we don't need to worry about bacteria, at least in Lake Superior," Bauman says. "We've always got this attitude that 'Oh, it's too cold to support that,' and I guess its proven that it's not."

The bacteria can cause flu-like symptoms, like stomach cramps or diarrhea. But it could be deadly. Bauman says people should pay attention to the signs at posted beaches.

"If you are a small child or an older person, or maybe somebody who's taking immuno-suppressive drugs," says Bauman. "You know your body can't handle viruses or whatever, I would definitely stay out of the water."

Officials will check Duluth's two posted beaches daily until bacteria counts drop. That could take just a couple of days. But there's rain forecast later this week -- heavy rain is a possibility -- and that could mean more time before the water is safe again for swimmers.

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