For more than a week, a health advisory has been issued for a portion of Pismo Beach near Wadsworth avenue, located just north of the Pismo Pier.
Locals said they were not aware of the advisory in place before they got into the water. Even after they were made aware of this advisory, they shared it's not much of a concern, explaining that it's just part of the territory.
Carson Norrbom lives in San Luis Obispo and started surfing last week near Wadsworth Avenue.
“It doesn’t matter to me as long as I don’t catch anything,” Norrbom said.
Dana McGregor Surfs near this part of Pismo Beach.
“I'm not too worried about it," said McGregor. "I do get ear infections sometimes, but I just put earplugs in and try not to swallow too much water.”
The San Luis Obispo County Health Agency said the advisory went into effect on September 16th, after tests showed an increased level of fecal indicator bacteria in the water, above safe levels.
Stanley Rice is part of the non-profit organization Surfrider, which conducts independent water quality tests in four areas of SLO County, including this one on Pismo Beach.
“It started before the rain,” Rice said. “If it were after the rain, you could understand it because the runoff carries a lot of stuff into the water. But before the rain, it's a problem.”
He said a twelve-day streak for an advisory is highly unusual for this area.
According to the California State Water Resources Control Board, in the county, only 22 out of the 322 health advisories issued within the last 10 years have lasted more than two to three days. The only advisory that has this current 12-day streak beat was previously issued for Hearst Memorial State Beach in December of 2019.
Rice said he doesn’t know what is causing the problem or where the bacteria are coming from.
“I don't know if anything down by Wadsworth flowed into the ocean,” Rice said. “So it's really kind of a mystery, and somebody should look into it.”
The County Health Department told KSBY that when they receive a health advisory notification, they try to work alongside beach managers to find the potential sources that led to elevated levels of bacteria.
Until the source is found, locals are encouraged to stay out of the water because it could pose a health risk.
