Canatara Park

Managed by Swim Drink Fish Canada - Great Lakes Guide

Canatara Park Beach is a Blue Flag Beach for the 2023 season*.

Canatara Beach is an urban beach located in the heart of Sarnia, on the shores of Lake Huron near the mouth of the St. Clair River. The sandy beach stretches nearly a kilometre along the shore. The beach is located in Canatara Park and boasts over 84 acres of parkland. The park is owned by the City of Sarnia. The park includes walking/biking trails, passive areas, picnic areas, forests, and so on. Lifeguarding services are provided at Canatara Beach and are patrolled by qualified lifeguards from June to the end of August from 11 am to 6 pm. There are washrooms and designated parking for people with disabilities. The park and beach area is located at the north end of Christina Street. Christina Street can be accessed from 402 Highway

Please be aware that dogs are not allowed on this beach.

*A Blue Flag beach is one that meets strict water quality and safety criteria. These beaches are certified annually as being clean, accessible, eco-friendly, and having great water quality! Swim Drink Fish is the National Operator for Blue Flag in Canada.

Photo by Loozrboy: https://flic.kr/p/6XpMbY

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Water Quality

Passed water quality tests 60-95% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on September 2nd, 2022. Swim Drink Fish Canada - Great Lakes Guide updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on September 2nd, 2022 at 10:51 AM.

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Current Weather

30°C

Clear and sunny

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

Lambton County Community Health Services samples beaches from the end of May to September 1st. Five beaches, Grand Bend North, Grand Bend South beach, Ipperwash Main Beach, Bright’s Grove Beach (including Mike Weir Park), and Canatara Park Beach use predictive modelling to post results every day from Monday to Friday. Pinery Provincial Park and C.J. McEwen Beach are sampled on Monday or Tuesday using the persistent beach method.

When information is updated on Lambton County's website, Swim Drink Fish updates Swim Guide.

As of 2018, Ontario beaches are following the Operational Approaches for Recreational Water Guideline, 2018, and the Recreational Water Protocol, 2018, for geometric mean and single-sample maximum parameters. These are now equivalent to those set out in the Guidelines for Canadian Recreational Water Quality – Third Edition, 2012: Geometric mean concentration (minimum of five samples): below 200 E. coli/100 mL, Single-sample maximum concentration: below 400 E. coli/100 mL. (These values replace the previous, more stringent Ontario standard: a geometric mean of less than 100 E. coli/100 mL.)

In Swim Guide, a beach is marked Green when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a 30-day period is below 200 E. coli / 100 ml of water and the single sample value is below 400 E.coli/100 mL.

A beach is marked Red when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a 30-day period exceeds 200 E. coli / 100 ml of water and/or exceeds the single sample value of 400 E.coli/100mL.

A beach is Grey when reliable or up-to-date information is not available.

DISCLAIMER: Historical data from 2017 and prior reflect the previous Ontario standard of a geometric mean of 100 E. coli /100 mL. Historical data from 2018 onward reflect the new Ontario Operational Approaches for Recreational Water Guideline, 2018: Geometric mean concentration 200 E. coli/ 100 mL and single-sample maximum concentration of 400 E. coli /100 mL.

Water Quality Graph