The Blue Water Task Force is Surfrider’s volunteer water quality monitoring program that provides critical water quality information to protect public health at the beach. Surfrider chapters use this program to raise awareness of local pollution problems and to bring together communities to implement solutions.
Blue Water Task Force (BWTF) labs measure fecal indicator bacteria levels in recreational waters and compare them to water quality standards set to protect public health. Chapter-run BWTF programs fill in the gaps and extend the coverage of agency-run beach monitoring programs by sampling ocean and bay beaches, estuaries and potential freshwater sources of pollution such as stormwater outlets, rivers and creeks that discharge onto the beach.
View Your Local Water Quality
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Water quality testing provided by Surfrider's {{info.name}} Chapter
Surfrider Foundation Newport partners with the Oregon Coast Aquarium'sYouth Program, who hosts this lab. Surfrider volunteers collect samples weekly and bring them to the Oregon Coast Aquarium to be processed by the Aquarium’s Youth Volunteers.
Our BWTF data augments the beach monitoring program conducted by Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and helps build community awareness of local pollution issues.
