Rodrigo Silva de Paula calls himself a “man of the water”: he spends about 330 days a year in the ocean teaching paddle surfing.
But the high levels of E. coli on some of Vancouver’s beaches are testing their patience.
“It’s frustrating because it’s not the first time it’s happened,” said a 44-year-old living in Vancouver, BC.
Silva de Paula is one of many residents who are asking the city to do more to protect beaches from bacteria.
Vancouver’s Sandy Beach, Snug Cove and Trout Lake beaches are currently under U.S. warnings. coli, which means they are not safe to swim in, according to Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH).
Bacteria can cause gastrointestinal diseases, skin and eye infections.
According to VCH, E. coli may be naturally present in water; however, there is an increased risk of disease with exposure to higher concentrations of the bacterium.
For example, bathing beaches will close if a sample finds E levels. coli greater than 400 in 100 milliliters of water.
Among the highest levels reported this month were on July 1 in Deep Cove, where E levels. coli were found around 9200 per 100 millimeters of water. Since then, that warning has been lifted.
English Bay is on display in May, with signs advising bathers to stay out of the water. E. coli is a bacterium that can cause gastrointestinal diseases and skin and eye infections, according to Vancouver Coastal Health. (Kiran Singh / CBC)
E. coli is a bacterium that is usually associated with fecal contamination of water, says Brett Finlay, who specializes in biotechnology at the University of British Columbia.
“It’s a way of saying the water is dirty, it’s contaminated. And there’s potential fecal contamination in there. And there could be danger in getting into that water and ingesting it,” he said.
VCH says the main contributors to E. coli in the water include septic tank leaks and boat unloading and stormwater runoff after heavy rains.
Silva de Paula says committing water to E. coli means livelihoods like his face more challenges, and people miss out on beach activities that can be affordable and a relief in the hot weather of the summer.
“If you work in a place where everything under you can be relatively toxic, it really changes the way you operate,” Silva de Paula said. He says customers also care about bacteria.
Rodrigo Silva de Paula says high levels of E.coli in the water mean livelihoods like his face more challenges and people miss out on activities on the beach. (Ben Nelms / CBC)
Bob Putnam, co-owner of the Deep Cove Kayak Center, which offers rentals and lessons for water activities such as paddle surfing and kayaking, says the high levels of E. coli on July 1 were unusual.
“It’s a very high reading they got. And that’s a little worrying why that happened,” he said.
If an E. notice is in effect. coli, Putnam says his team changes the location of kayaking classes, when those lessons involve teaching kids to dump.
Others continue to kayak but avoid swimming, Putnam says.
“We’ll encourage people to wash their hands. We find that most people aren’t too worried about that.”
Mitigation of E. coli for the future a work in progress
With climate change, more intense rains and floods are likely to help increase E. coli on the beaches of Vancouver, Finlay says.
“Adverse weather events always cause adverse infections, basically. And it underscores our current hygiene systems, no doubt.”
To help reduce E. levels. coli in water, it is important to address water quality as a whole, according to Finlay.
“What else is in the water that could be dirty? And how can we get that cleaner water?”
One of the Vancouver City’s efforts is to separate the combined sewer catchments and pumping stations, which they say are likely to have supported E. reductions. coli over the years.
In a combined sewer and stormwater system, the city’s infrastructure can overflow rapidly during heavy rains, resulting in an excess of rainwater and untreated wastewater that overflows into a nearby body of water, according to the city.
A separate system means that rainwater is collected through storm drains, allowing it to travel through different pipes of domestic wastewater and other wastewater, and eliminating overflow of wastewater.
In a combined sewer and stormwater system, the city’s infrastructure can be seen quickly overflowing during major rain events. (Stories about here)
“Separation of the sewer is a very complex process that will cost the city billions of dollars in the coming years,” a city spokesman said in an email statement.
The city says its current prospects for the next 10 years will see sewer separation works at Dunbar, Balaclava, Angus, China Creek, Point Gray, Grandview Woodlands and Hastings-Sunrise sewer catchments.
“We are currently working to replace about 1 percent of the sewer system annually, with the goal of eliminating combined sewer overflows by 2050.”