Climate Change Impacts on Microbiota in Beach Sand and Water: Looking Ahead

João Brandão, Chelsea Weiskerger, Elisabete Valério, Tarja Pitkänen, Päivi Meriläinen, Lindsay Avolio, Christopher D. Heaney and Michael J. Sadowsky
Additional contact information
João Brandão: Department of Environmental Health, National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge, 1649-016 Lisboa, Portugal
Chelsea Weiskerger: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
Elisabete Valério: Department of Environmental Health, National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge, 1649-016 Lisboa, Portugal
Tarja Pitkänen: Department of Health Security, The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, 70210 Kuopio, Finland
Päivi Meriläinen: Department of Health Security, The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, 70210 Kuopio, Finland
Lindsay Avolio: Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Christopher D. Heaney: Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Michael J. Sadowsky: BioTechnology Institute, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-15

Abstract: Beach sand and water have both shown relevance for human health and their microbiology have been the subjects of study for decades. Recently, the World Health Organization recommended that recreational beach sands be added to the matrices monitored for enterococci and Fungi. Global climate change is affecting beach microbial contamination, via changes to conditions like water temperature, sea level, precipitation, and waves. In addition, the world is changing, and humans travel and relocate, often carrying endemic allochthonous microbiota. Coastal areas are amongst the most frequent relocation choices, especially in regions where desertification is taking place. A warmer future will likely require looking beyond the use of traditional water quality indicators to protect human health, in order to guarantee that waterways are safe to use for bathing and recreation. Finally, since sand is a complex matrix, an alternative set of microbial standards is necessary to guarantee that the health of beach users is protected from both sand and water contaminants. We need to plan for the future safer use of beaches by adapting regulations to a climate-changing world.

Keywords: climate change; global warming; beach sand; FIB; sand; recreational water; bathing water (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1444/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1444/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:3:p:1444-:d:736170

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().