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I want to thank the Committee for giving me the opportunity to express my 

 strong support for H.R. 31, the Beaches Environmental Assessment, Closure, and 

 Health Act of 1993. I would also like to commend Congressman Hughes for his 

 leadership in the effort to enact this important legislation to safeguard our nation's 

 beaches and coastal waters. 



H.R. 31 protects public health and the environment by establishing uniform, 

 national standards for testing coastal waters for bacteria contamination and by 

 requiring the posting of notices at beaches where bacteria concentrations exceed safe 

 levels. This legislation is sorely needed and long overdue. 



In New Jersey, we recognized the importance of having uniform standards for 

 ocean water quality back in 1 985. That year, our State implemented the Cooperative 

 Coastal Monitoring Program to ensure that all coastal communities in New Jersey used 

 the same standards and procedures for assessing ocean water quality and for closing 

 beaches when the standards are not met. 



Today, New Jersey's program for monitoring coastal waters for bacteria 

 contamination is the toughest in the nation. We require weekly sampling and testing 

 at hundreds of locations along our 127-mile coastline. If bacteria levels are found to 

 exceed State standards, the beach is closed and it stays closed until the water quality 

 returns to safe levels. In this respect. New Jersey's program provides even greater 

 protection for the public than H.R. 31, which does not mandate beach closures. 



A recent study by the Natural Resources Defense Council confirms that no 

 State does more than New Jersey to ensure that its beaches and coastal waters are 

 clean and safe. Sadly, this same study also revealed that most other States do only 

 limited monitoring of water quality and some do none at all. 



Regular water quality testing is the only way to determine if the ocean contains 

 harmful bacteria or viruses. Ocean bathers who take the plunge into untested waters 

 face the risk of contracting a variety of illnesses, including hepatitis, gastroenteritis, 

 skin and ear infections. 



To further compound the problem, even among States that regularly monitor 

 their coastal waters, there is no consensus as to when bacteria levels should be 

 considered harmful. The same levels that would trigger a beach closure in one State 

 will be considered safe for swimming in another. 



H.R. 31 provides solutions to both of these problems. It greatly reduces the 

 risk that bathers will be exposed to untested waters by requiring the U.S. 

 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to issue regulations specifying how frequently 

 States must monitor their coastal waters. And the bill addresses the current 

 uncertainty over when bacteria levels may be considered safe by having the EPA 

 establish numerical standards that apply nationwide. 



