There was an increase in the number of warnings and closures issued for beaches across Windsor-Essex in 2024.
There were 27 water quality warnings issued and nine beach closures in 2024, above the 20 warnings and 3 closures issued in 2023.
One warning was issued for a blue-green algae bloom in 2024, observed at the Lakeshore Lakeview Park West Beach.
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit's annual beach monitoring program ran for a total of 15 weeks, from May 22 to Aug. 28.
Eight public beaches were monitored throughout the season with weekly water samples collected to test for the harmful bacteria like E. coli.
Holiday Beach in Amherstburg had the most closures with four in 2024.