Still work to be done at beaches

Who would have guessed it? All it takes to keep our beaches and oceans clean is a bit of a drought.

A report released last week by Heal the Bay, a water-quality watchdog group based in Santa Monica, found that the quality of water at Newport’s beaches was just fine when the weather was dry. All along Newport’s coast and in the harbor, the water got A grades from the group in its annual Beach Report Card survey. Those superlative grades included the old trouble that long has dotted the harbor. In all, 31 of 32 beaches in Newport got an A grade during dry weather.

That’s the good news, but is not exactly unexpected. By now, we all know ? we do, don’t we? ? that the real trouble and danger comes after it rains, when our storm drains empty into the ocean or Newport Harbor and when the Santa Ana River is spewing out trash.

And the Beach Report Card proves it, again. After it rained, the water’s cleanliness and subsequent safety dropped in many places. The harbor became a mess, with only the beach at 10th Street and Rocky Point Beach safe for swimming. The area around the Santa Ana River received Fs. Fortunately, the end of the Balboa Peninsula, Corona del Mar and Crystal Cove remained healthy places to go in the water.

What to make of these results? First, the obvious: If it hasn’t rained, our beaches are generally safe and clean. Second, there has been much improvement. Many of our beaches are safe in sunny or rainy weather. But more telling and more importantly, the results also show that there still is much more to be done to ensure the waters that we all enjoy, the waters that help drive business to our community, are clean and safe. Finding ways to treat water needs to remain a priority. Each of us doing the little things each day is a must.

Our ocean should be earning an A, all the time.