[BCNnet] Sun Times article about dogs to deter birds on beach

[Randi Doeker - Chicago]

FYI - Randi Doeker, Chicago


 


 


 


Park District hopes dogs can keep lake clean 


May 25, 2006 

BY LORI RACKL <mailto:lrackl at suntimes.com>  Health Reporter 


 

Barking border collies are just one of the new weapons the Chicago Park
District will use to reduce the number of swim bans during this year's beach
season, which starts Friday. 

The idea is to decrease the amount of Lake Michigan's bacteria, which makes
swimming off-limits when levels climb too high. A fair share of the bacteria
is thought to come from bird droppings deposited in the water or washed off
the beach into the lake. 

Fewer gulls, cleaner water 

That's where the collies come in: For four weeks at one of the city's 31
public beaches, the dogs will give an early morning wake-up call to the many
gulls that spend the night on the sand, hopefully scaring the birds into
finding a new home. 

Another novel approach being tested this season calls for stringing a grid
of wires about 12 feet above Dumpsters to keep birds from garbage picking.
The grids are supposed to go up at three lakefront sites, most likely
including Foster and 63rd Street beaches. These beaches are among those that
log the most swim bans, which happened 78 times last year in Chicago. 

"The wires keep the birds from diving down," said Joyce Coffee of the
Chicago Department of Environment. "We'll see if the water is getting
cleaner and if there are fewer gulls in the area." 

The dogs and wires probably won't be used until mid-June because the city
doesn't want to disrupt the migration pattern of piping plovers and other
birds as they make their annual trek north. 

One change will be rolled out next week: a new, $200,000 fleet of lidded
trash cans. Some 2,000 pairs of large garbage containers -- green for
regular waste and blue for recyclables -- will replace the unlidded cans
that have served as a lakefront buffet for animals and birds. 

More signs are being posted reminding people not to litter, feed the birds
or be careless with kids' diapers -- another potential source of fecal
bacteria. And beachgoers can find out if the water is safe for swimming by
calling the Park District's new hotline, 312-74BEACH. 

E. coli signal 

The Park District, like many agencies that oversee beaches, monitors levels
of E. coli bacteria. Elevated E. coli levels are a sign that other
disease-causing organisms are in the water. 

Studies around the country have shown that up to 14 percent of swimmers get
sick from polluted water, usually suffering mild cases of gastrointestinal
woes. Swimmers also can catch eye, skin and respiratory infections, but
experts say people often don't trace their illnesses back to dirty water. 

The Natural Resources Defense Council announced plans Wednesday to file a
federal lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for not
doing enough to protect beachgoers from polluted water. 

"A day at the beach should not mean a night in the bathroom, or worse, a
night in the hospital," said Nancy Stoner, director of the environmental
group's clean water project. 

The group blasted the EPA for missing a congressional deadline last year to
update public health standards related to beaches. It also called for faster
water-quality tests and more research into waterborne illnesses. 

An EPA spokesman responded to the criticism by saying the agency has worked
with states to expand beach monitoring in recent years and is in the midst
of developing a test that measures water quality in less than two hours. 

 

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