Tell the City of Ottawa that we need more testing at beaches
Raise your voice and tell Ottawa Public Health that one test a week is not enough. Ottawa Riverkeeper urges Ottawa Public Health to reinstate daily water quality testing ahead of the 2025 swim season.
Ottawa Riverkeeper recently learned that Ottawa Public Health is planning to reduce its testing of water quality at City of Ottawa beaches from 7 days/week to only 1 day-week.
We are deeply concerned. This is a huge step back for the City of Ottawa.
Why we’re concerned:
- The public deserves to know whether it’s safe to swim or not.
- Testing only 1 day/week is not frequent enough to catch changes in water quality in an urban environment.
- There are too many factors influencing water quality to make an assessment without testing.
This decision will negatively impact swim sites at Britannia Beach, Mooney’s Bay Beach, Petrie East Bay, Petrie River, and Westboro Beach.
We crunched the numbers from the last three seasons (2022-2024) to understand what’s at stake with the City of Ottawa’s new plan. The results are shocking: In testing 1 day/week, up to 20% of results will be false. In a 12-week swim season, that equates to roughly 17 days with false results: either the beach is open when the water is actually too polluted to swim in; or the beach is closed when the water is actually safe.
Though water quality of the Ottawa River is usually swimmable, this is not always the case. Many factors can negatively influence water quality. This includes heavy precipitation, sewer overflows, stormwater drainage, higher water temperatures, shallow water, low flow, algal blooms, and the presence of wildlife such as geese whose feces can contaminate the water. With so many factors influencing water quality, the only way to know for sure whether it’s safe to swim is through testing.
City of Ottawa beaches are important for residents and visitors alike. They provide exceptional recreational and tourism opportunities. They allow for people to cool off on hot summer days, which are becoming increasingly frequent. And, like all blue spaces, access to urban beaches plays an important role in supporting both physical and mental health.
Ottawa Riverkeeper urges Ottawa Public Health to reinstate daily water quality testing ahead of the 2025 swim season.
Sign our petition to add your name to this call, and join us in letting Ottawa Public Health know that this is not enough!