The Martlet

If you’re considering a dip in the Pacific Ocean at the nearby Cadboro Bay beach, it may be a little chilly, but at least there isn’t crap in the water.

The Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA) has been monitoring local beaches throughout the summer for levels of faecal coliform, otherwise known as poo.

“People automatically assume it’s a person’s, but that’s not always the case,” said VIHA administrative co-ordinator Arlene Turner. “Most of the time it’s [from] geese.”

Cadboro Bay beach, just a 10-minute walk from UVic down the big hill on Sinclair Road, has had an average of roughly 30 faecal coliform per 100 milliletres of water this summer.

To put that in perspective, the health authority only warns the public about levels when they reach 200 faecal coliform per 100 milliletres.

“It’s been very good this year,” Turner said of the levels at Cadboro Bay beach.

Other beaches in the area have not been so lucky. High faecal coliform levels at beaches along Elk Lake and Prospect Lake caused the health authority to close those beaches to swimmers earlier this summer.

VIHA monitored Cadboro Beach weekly through the summer up until the Labour Day long weekend, Turner said.

So while swimmers may want to keep any eye out for Caddy the sea monster, who has been spotted swimming in Cadboro Bay numerous times over the years, for now at least, they can rest assured knowing that they’re not wading in bird dung.