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Environmental Health Officer Steven Aguinaga said the health department has received just enough money to test four beaches for eight weeks, and the Department of Environmental Quality told them which ones to test.

The health department will begin weekly water testing at Port Sanilac, Lexington, Forester County Park and Lexington County Park beaches on July 1.

The samples will be taken each Tuesday and they will have the test results on Wednesday, enough time to re-test before the weekend if the bacteria count is high. They plan to contract with a local wastewater treatment plant for the testing to have the one-day turn around. The health department contracts for the testing. Samples are taken from water at least hip deep at the north, center and south of the beach.

"Normally it would be from Memorial Day through Labor Day. With the cuts we attempt to catch the weeks people are most likely to swim. The state is trying to get additional grant money," Aguinaga stated.

Before the beach test funding began declining in 2003, the health department tested the water at seven public beaches in the county, including Forestville's. It is the only local village with a public beach that is not tested.

"They called and wanted to get on the beach monitoring cycle. We talked about a paid service. It is about $1,250 for eight weeksÉThey have to take it back to the village board," stated Aguinaga.

Forestville resident Sandy Clink, who personally paid for the water testing year, said Councilman Tim Sielaff told her the council is not going to have the beach water tested.

"There is a sign down there that says the beach is open and I requested they take it down, it give a false (impression the water is tested)," said Clink. "They are going to put a sign down there posted swim at your own risk, it is not tested. That's better than nothing," Clink added.

Last year she paid to have the beach water tested when the village refused to pay for testing. Clink took two water samples -from the shore and three feet out the week before July 4. She had Wade Trim -the company that tests the village's drinking water-send in the samples.

"It tested for Ecoli, but not high enough to shut it down...It cost me less than $25. It smelled so nasty down there it stinks like a sewer," Clink said. The dead alga that washes up on the shore smells.

"The DEQ did notify us that we have fairly decent beaches. Even when we tested seven, we did not have extreme beach closures," said Aguinaga.

However, he said it does take almost 48 hours after a hard rain for the contamination to go downstream and settle out.

Who would be responsible if someone got sick from swimming at a contaminated public beach?

Aguinaga thinks the health department and the government in charge of the beach would share the responsibility.