By Jorge Casuso
July 3, 2025 -- As Independence Day weekend approaches, two stretches of Santa Monica State Beach are under Public Health advisories due to high levels of bacteria.
The area 100 yards up and down the coast at the Wilshire Boulevard storm drain and at the Pier "had bacteria levels exceeding health standards when last tested," LA County Public Health officials said Wednesday.
The two beaches were among eight in Los Angeles County where beachgoers are advised "to avoid swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters."
The health advisory for the area around the Windward storm drain at Venice Beach was lifted after "recent sample results identified water quality levels within State standards," health officials said.
Sites are considered potentially unsafe if the concentration of bacteria exceeds the level at which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates 32 out of 1,000 swimmers will get sick from the water.
The area around the Wilshire Boulevard storm drain was added to the advisory list Tuesday, while the Pier has been under a health advisory since May 21.
The advisory for the Wilshire stretch was a rare occurance during dry summer weather. According to Heal the Bay, the area has received weekly grades of A or A+ since March 28, falling only once to a B.
Meanwhile, the Pier has routinely received F grades since at least 2010, the earliest gades listed on its website, and is consistently under a County Health advisory, often accompanied by the nearby Pico-Kentor storm drain.
In fact, the Pier is the second most polluted beach on the West Coast, according to Heal the Bay's 2024-25 Beach Report ("Pier 2nd Most Polluted Beach on West Coast," May 23, 2025).
The Pier's failing grades are largely due to debris from large crowds, fecal matter from birds and its proximity to the storm drain, which receives runoff that carries bacteria.
Heal the Bay's grades are based on levels of fecal-indicator bacterial pollution in the ocean measured by County health agencies.
The high levels of bacteria around the Pier persist after the City has spent more than $100 million over the last six years to protect Santa Monica Bay and improve beach water quality.
The City has been working with Heal the Bay and other entities to continue to "research and implement new strategies to address the ocean water quality directly underneath the Santa Monica Pier," City officials have said.
They note that the Pier receives more than 10 million visitors a year and that the area included in Heal the Bay's annual report encompasses only a 5 percent stretch of Santa Monica's 3-mile coastline.
