UPDATE: Beach Swimming Advisories Lifted

After reporting beach closings and swimming advisories Tuesday and Wednesday, the state Department of Environmental Protection just hours later announced that all beaches in Monmouth County were open for business. 

The spokeswoman told Patch late Wednesday afternoon that the DEP was receiving "different" results that have been "confusing." 

Swimming advisories were reported by the DEP to be in effect for Spring Lake's Worthington Avenue beach and Shark River Beach and Yacht Club's bay beach in Neptune. 

The DEP also reported Tuesday that the East Main Street beach in Manasquan was closed, but Borough Administrator Joe DeIorio said no beaches in the borough were closed that day. 

Additional testing was conducted Tuesday after earlier tests this week revealed high levels of bacteria in several waters along the Jersey Shore, according to DEP reports. 

Each location was re-tested Tuesday, as the state's sanitary code says beaches must be resampled when bacteria concentrations exceed the primary contact standard of 104 enterococci per 100 mL of sample, the DEP says.  

"There were a significant amount of exceedances to the bacteria standard as a result of receiving over one inch of rain prior to the sampling event. The nonpoint source pollution carried into the rivers, bay and ocean from the stormwater runoff contributed to these results," Tuesday's report said. 

The highest levels of colony forming units per 100 mL solution among the three beaches were found in Manasquan, where there reportedly were "too numerous to count," according to Monday's test.

The Spring Lake beach registered 120 CFU/100 mL, and the Shark River beach in Neptune registered 160 CFU, according to Monday's test.

According to Tuesday's results, levels at Manasquan's East Main Street beach dropped to 90 CFU; Spring Lake's Worthing Avenue beach to 20; and Neptune's Shark River beach to 10. 

The spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday that the levels reported in both tests were accurate.