One of America’s most popular beaches has also become the most polluted one. The environmental non-profit group Heal the Bay has just ranked Santa Monica Pier as the most polluted beach in the Golden State for the fifth year in a row.
The Santa Monica Pier beaches are considered to be California’s most popular tourist destinations. The Pier is “an internationally recognized icon of Southern California” that draws more than 9 million visitors each year. Pacific Park is an amusement park located on the Santa Monica Pier.
But this staggering number of tourists comes at an environmental cost. Santa Monica Pier, as it has made the “Beach Bummers” list for 15 of the worst ocean beaches “from sites in Mexico near Tijuana all the way up the coast through Washington” for the last 21 years now, despite desperate efforts to improve the water quality.
Heal the Bay’s annual “Beach Report Card” evaluates water quality by tracking fecal contamination, polluted urban runoff, and deteriorating infrastructure. Playa Blanca in Tijuana claimed the top spot as the most polluted in the “Beach Bummers” division, with Santa Monica Pier right behind it in 2nd place. This is the second consecutive year in a row that Santa Monica Pier received 2nd place.
In their report, Heal the Bay said that, “Upgrades from the City of Santa Monica, such as stormwater capture systems and installation of bird deterrent netting, have been implemented to reduce pollution. While many of these upgrades have aligned with temporary improvements to water quality, bacteria levels have since increased. These persistent problems highlight the need for sustained investment and maintenance to improve the area’s environmental health.”
Heal the Bay further reported that the coastal waters of Santa Monica Pier are heavily degraded by sewage spills and polluted stormwater runoff, particularly following heavy rain.
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