Ocean Outfall – NW 15th Street

Lincoln City, Oregon

Managed by Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council

Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council Launches new online service for Water Quality Data

Driving on the beach is discouraged. Sand is soft and vehicles routinely get stuck. It is also adjacent to fragile tidepool region which is susceptible to pollution. Site has restrooms and benches for viewing the ocean. Sample is from stormwater discharge at bottom of hill.

Sample site is in the southern Cascade Head Marine Protected Area (MPA) which was established in 2012 as part of the Cascade Head Marine Reserve. With the exception of fishing with nets, all types of legal take including hook and line fishing, crabbing, and shellfish harvesting is allowed. FMI - OregonMarineReserves.com/reserves/cascade-head/

Site is also located within the larger UNESCO Cascade Head Biosphere Reserve. This is the only site in Oregon and one of only four United Nations designated biosphere reserves on the West Coast. The Cascade Head Biosphere Reserve’s diverse ecosystem includes: 7 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline including the marine reserve, the Salmon River and its estuary, a littoral sand spit, dune and beach pine complex, the communities of Lincoln City and Otis, and of course Cascade Head, a prolific basalt rock, prairie headland jutting out to sea. Visit CascadeHead.org to learn more.

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COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is essential right now. Follow the advice of the health experts. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Heading to the beach should only be considered an option if social distancing practices can be followed. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter the efforts to curb the virus’ spread.

For more information, please visit the World Health Organization public resource on COVID-19.

Water Quality

Met water quality standards less than 60% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on June 29th, 2020. Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on June 30th, 2020 at 11:38 PM.

For water quality icon legend, click:

Report Pollution

Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

The Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council (SDCWC) has been collecting water samples since 2006. Water samples are collected by the Watershed Council with the help of volunteers. The Water Quality Program Manager oversees and coordinates the sampling and analysis along providing training to new volunteers.

Samples are processed using the IDEXX system. The water at the sample sites are tested for E.coli (freshwater) or Enterococcus (ocean or estuary) as well as dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, specific conductance, and turbidity. Water Quality Data are compared to state and federal standards as part of a baseline monitoring program. SDCWC does not issue any advisories, but information is available for public's use.

The monitoring program is variable based on funding and resources. As results become available they are shared on Swim Guide.

Monitoring Status: SDCWC follows Oregon’s standard for the monitoring of its recreational waters. This does not include such uses as shell fish harvesting and thus the results are not protective or to be used for gauging the safety of harvesting or commercial cultivation of clams or other species. That value is limited to 14 Fecal coliform bacteria per 100ml.

E. coli
A beach is marked GREEN when single sample results are less than 406 cfu per 100 mL and when applicable, a 90-day geometric mean is less than 126 cfu per 100 mL).
A beach is marked RED when a single sample exceeds 406 or the 90 day geometric average exceeds 126.

Enterococcus
A beach is marked GREEN when a single sample is less than 130 organisms per 100 ml.
A beach is marked RED when a single sample is greater than 130 organisms per 100ml.
This level is set by the Beach Action Value established by Oregon Health Authority in 2017.
A beach is marked Grey if there is no current results or no available information.

SDCWC is currently supported by the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Surfrider Blue Water Task Force, and Neighbors For Kids in Depoe Bay, Oregon where their bacteria lab resides.

Links:

Freshwater Bacteria Limit: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-02/documents/wqs-oregon-bacteria-epa-approval-11-17-2017.pdf

Beach Action Value: https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/HEALTHYENVIRONMENTS/RECREATION/BEACHWATERQUALITY/Pages/beachactionvalue.aspx

Oregon Bacteria Rule, Bacteria Criteria for Marine and Estuarine Waters (For reference only as some values are outdated): https://www.oregon.gov/deq/Filtered%20Library/IMDBacteria.pdf

Water Quality Graph