Wouldn’t it be nice to see the water quality of Bayou Texar be safe to go into again? Right now, it is not. Page through the last year of Health Department inspections and see how often this occurs for Bayou Texar.
Unless you’ve been paying attention, you will be surprised to learn that the regular and chronic closing of Bayou Texar due to fecal contamination has been an issue in Pensacola for over 30 years. And it isn’t getting any better. Not surprising since the City/County/State government has done nothing to remedy the situation.
Now, Bayou Texar is ranked the worst in the State of Florida.
Top six Florida sample sites by the number of potentially unsafe days:
- Bayou Texar: 24 (Escambia County)
- Sanders Beach: 23 (Escambia County)
- Crandon Park on Key Biscayne: 17 (Miami-Dade County)
- Bird Key Park: 17 (Sarasota County)
- Venice Fishing Pier: 15 (Sarasota County)
- Bayou Chico: 14 (Escambia County)
The report also revealed, “a sampling site at Bayou Texar in Escambia County was potentially unsafe for 24 days, more than any other site in the state.”
Bayou Texar water quality and what’s being done about it has been on The Lunch Counter’s radar since 2007. A link to all of the articles is HERE. Sadly, it seems the reason I posed for the lack of action in 2007 remains the same. There is no political will to follow through to clean it up. And there are no deep pockets to sue.
Links: Florida Healthy Beaches Program | Have you been swimming in fecal matter at Alabama and Florida beaches? | Lawsuit Perfect Storm Set In Pensacola
