Beach OutfallI bet some of you are headed off for a spring vacation pretty soon, as I am. Think of all the great places you can go...

Headed to the beach for some sand and sun? Watch out where you swim. NRDC's latest Beach Report showed that sewage spills and overflows contributed to nearly 900 days of beach closings or health advisories and that water at 200 beaches exceeded health standards at least 25% of the time (from sewage and other sources). But lucky for you, the federal BEACH Act requires monitoring and notification at beaches. Sadly, this law does not apply to streams and rivers where many of us swim and play.

Snow MakerSo how about skiing? There's some pretty good snow conditions in a lot of places right now. But know that when you hit the slopes, you could be skiing in sewage. Strange as that sounds, some places are now turning their sewage effluent into snow. Ski areas in Arizona, Australia, and Maine are either considering recycling wastewater in this way or already doing so. (The issue is under appeal in Arizona.) The big question is whether or not these kind of flakes are safe. Either way, better not eat the snow.

Whatever you do over break, have a good time - but don't think you can get away from the sewage story.