Chapter 4.60 — PUBLIC FRESH WATER SPORTS AREAS

The term "public fresh water sports area" shall mean any body of fresh water, including portions thereof, whether owned and operated by a public entity or by a private Person, firm or corporation, to which members of the public are invited, upon the payment of admission or not, for public fresh water sports activities. Included within said term are rivers, creeks, lakes, ponds, and lagoons excluded from the scope of ocean water sport regulations.

(Prior code § 4600; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

The term "public fresh water sports activities" shall mean any activity of a recreational nature involving immediate physical contact between the human body and water in a public fresh water sports area. Said

term shall include wading, swimming, paddle boarding, skin diving, and water skiing among other activities, but shall exclude boating and fishing.

(Prior code § 4601; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

The County Health Officer shall, as often as he deems necessary, conduct an environmental survey of particular fresh water sports areas and any streams, channels, drains, and the like appurtenant thereto. The purpose of such survey shall be to investigate the presence of hazardous chemicals, harmful aquatic organisms, animal wastes, and other elements immediately or cumulatively deleterious to human health, and of sewage discharges, weed growths, algae blooms, fecal coliform bacteriological counts, and other conditions.

(Prior code § 4610; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

No public fresh water sports area shall be used for public fresh water sports activities where the County Health Officer determines that either:

(1)

there is a fecal coliform count of more than 200 organisms per 100 ml. in twenty percent (20%) or more of the water samples taken from any sample station, and evidence of human fecal contamination exists; or

(2)

sewage discharges posing a significant danger of contamination exist in the immediate vicinity of the public fresh water sports area; or

(3)

any other conditions or elements rendering the public fresh water sports area unfit for public fresh water sports activities have been demonstrated to exist by the environmental survey.

(Prior code § 4620; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

No Person afflicted with any communicable disease shall either be employed at or granted use of public fresh water sports areas for so long as he is so afflicted. Either the County Health Officer, the owner or the operator of the public fresh water sports area may require any Person suspected of such affliction to present a written statement by a physician declaring that such Person is free from communicable disease. The County Health Officer may require additional documentation by the physician where he determines the written statement to be incomplete.

(Prior code § 4621; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

Where he determines any public fresh water sports area to be unfit for use within the meaning of section 4.60.040, hereinabove, the County Health Officer may, in his discretion, require it to close entirely or may restrict its use and may post, or cause the owner or operator to post, conspicuous warning signs announcing its closing or restriction of use.

(Prior code § 4622; Ord. 2413, 01/11/77)

The owner of every public fresh water sports area shall be liable to pay annually an inspection fee of $100 to reimburse the County Health Officer for his costs in enforcing the health requirements in this chapter.

(Prior code § 4623; Ord. 2514, 06/20/78)

Every owner or operator of a public fresh water sports area shall register the fact of such ownership or operation with the County Health Officer. Each owner and operator of an existing public fresh water sports area shall register it within six (6) months of the enactment of this section. Every owner and operator of a fresh water sports area which commences operation at any time following the enactment of this section shall register it within thirty (30) days of such commencement of operation.

(Prior code § 4624; Ord. 2514, 06/20/78)