MOREHEAD CITY – State recreational water quality officials lifted water quality swimming alerts at two sound-side sites in Beaufort County on Friday.

Subsequent sampling of the sites shows that bacteria levels have dropped to within the state’s and the Environmental Protection Agency’s standards set for swimming and water play.

One of the alerts was for sound-side waters at the public access to Pantego Creek at the intersection of East Main and Tooley streets in Belhaven. The other was for the public access at the junction of upper Goose Creek and Dinah’s Landing near Washington. Water samples taken on June 8 showed bacterial levels at these sites exceeded the state and federal standards.

Enterococcus, the organism used for testing, are found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals. While it does not cause illness itself, scientific studies indicate that its presence is closely correlated to the presence of other disease-causing organisms. People swimming or playing in waters with bacteria levels higher than the standards have an increased risk of developing gastrointestinal illness.

Coastal recreational waters in North Carolina are generally clean. However, it is important to continue monitoring them, so the public can be informed of any localized problems. The N.C. Recreational Water Quality Program samples 204 sites in coastal waters of the state, most of them on a weekly basis from April through October.

For more information on the N.C. Recreational Water Quality Program, visit its website at: portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/recreational-water-quality or on Twitter.com @ncrecprgm.