Mercyhurst expands research of beach water quality

A new grant from the Pennsylvania Coastal Zone Management Program will enable Mercyhurst College biologists to further fine-tune their research of contaminants in the recreational waters at Presque Isle State Park, this time targeting hazardous chemicals.

The $20,000 grant, awarded to Mercyhurst College in collaboration with the Regional Science Consortium, comes as good news to Dr. Steven Mauro, assistant professor of biology, who has led the research effort and continued to expand its parameters since 2006.

Over the years, Mauro and his team of student researchers have developed protocols to reduce bacterial sampling time, produced scientific evidence linking human waste in creeks to beach water contamination, and established the first long-term pathogen-specific study at Presque Isle.

This new funding will expand the biology department's research into identifying chemicals and assessing their prevalence in the Lake Erie beach waters. Last summer, Mauro said researchers identified a number of chemicals in the water, among them Triclosan, a common antibacterial agent present in some cosmetics, deoderants and toothpaste; Fluoxetine, an antidepressant; Diuron, an herbicide; and Ethinylestradiol, a synthetic steroidal estrogen. The research was unable to quantify the amounts of those chemicals at the time to ascertain whether they posed a human health hazard.

"We are hoping that our next round of research will allow us to determine whether these chemicals are in amounts that would negatively impact water quality and adversely affect the health of beachgoers," Mauro said.

Still, the study of water quality is a daunting task, considering all the contaminants that could give rise to health hazards. For every one that is found, there is likely another, Mauro admitted.

"All we can do is be proactive in using our science to more precisely analyze water quality and then work with local health officials to deliver results that we hope will better inform our recreational swimmers and keep our beaches as safe as possible," he said.

Provided by Mercyhurst College