Before you head out to the beach this weekend, check bacteria levels

GALVESTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Before you head to the beach this weekend, you might want to check fecal bacteria levels (yes, you read that right) of local waterways.

The Texas General Land Office maintains an interactive map showing bacteria levels at more than two dozen sites up and down the coast from Matagorda Bay northward to Goat Island, with additional clusters of testing sites near the Texas-Louisiana border, Corpus Christi Bay and Brownsville.

By and large, most of the local sites tested along the coast are registering low levels of fecal bacteria, indicating bacteria counts below 35 colony forming units (cfu) of bacteria per 100 ml of water sample.

Various points throughout southeast Texas are registering moderate levels of fecal bacteria between 35 and 104cfu/100 ml.

Each sampling point is tested weekly for the presence of Enterococcus bacteri, which thrives in water contaminated from sewage or storm water runoff. In some cases, the presence of such bacteria could potentially be an indicator of disease-causing microorganisms. If a health threat is detected, the agency will issue a water quality advisory.

Report a typo to the ABC13 staff