(WWJ) -- There’s a bit of disappointing news for people heading to the beaches this holiday weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July, as the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has announced 11 beaches across the state will be closed, due to increased bacteria levels, as a result of runoff from last week’s heavy rainstorms.
EGLE says the 11 beaches -- six of which are in metro Detroit -- were flagged for high levels of bacteria, as of July 1, which is pretty typical following heavy rain, according to the department.
The 11 beaches include:
Handsome Lake - Crossroads For Youth - Oakland County
Crooked Lake - Independence Oaks County Park - Oakland County
Pontiac Lake - Pontiac Recreation Area - Oakland County
Bush Lake - Holly Village Beach - Oakland County
Lake St. Clair - St. Clair Shores Memorial Park Beach - Macomb County
Keweenaw Bay / Lake Superior - First Sand Beach - Baraga County
Portage Canal / Lake Superior - Houghton City Beach - Houghton County
Saginaw Bay-Lake Huron - Singing Bridge Beach - Arenac County
Park Lake - Bath Township Park Lake Beach - Clinton County
Silver Lake - City Park Beach - Genesee County
Ross Lake - Beaverton City Park - Gladwin County
While Pontiac Lake, a popular destination for many metro Detroiters, is on the list of beaches affected by high bacteria levels, EGLE’s Shannon Briggs tells WWJ it’s just over the threshold to be flagged.
“It barely went over our water quality standards. Our water quality standard is 300 and it is at 303. So this Pontiac lake, it’s probably going to recover relatively quickly,” Briggs told WWJ.
Briggs says she has seen a pattern of higher bacteria levels because of the rain, but hopes the holiday weekend will bring good weather, which will help the beaches recover more quickly.
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