I take my dogs to a swimming beach on the South River where it empties into the Chesapeake Bay - and fortunately, Anne Arundel County has a great sewage spill notification program so I know when to keep the pooches out to avoid health problems. While some states work to keep their citizens (and their furry friends) safe by requiring public notification, much of the country is left in the dark about when it might not be such a good idea to take a dip.

Surprisingly, perhaps, this is not a minor issue - EPA estimates that 860 billion gallons of sewage are released into America's waters every year. Over 30 years since the Clean Water Act was passed with the goal of eliminating the discharge of pollutants to our waters, there are regular sewage overflows and spills seemingly every day. And these are the ones that we know about. There are many more that are unreported to the public because there is no federal requirement for sewage treatment operators to notify us when there is sewage in our streams and rivers.

We're alerted for other health risks - like food safety and poor air quality - so why not for sewage? Given the health risks from contact with un- or partially treated sewage, it seems like a pretty basic concept that we should know when sewage has made its way into waters where we swim, fish and play.

Good thing then that Representatives Tim Bishop (D-NY) and Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) have introduced a bill that will ensure that we will know when sewage pollutes our waters so that we can protect ourselves and our families. The Raw Sewage Overflow Community Right-to-Know Act of 2007 establishes strict requirements for sewer operators to notify the public, public health officials, and downstream drinking water intakes when sewage is present in the waters where we paddle, swim, fish and.

The old saying "prevention is the best medicine" is apt here - and there's no way to prevent sewage related sicknesses unless you know what's in your water.