35 Superstar Beaches (And 17 You Might Want to Reconsider)

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The report also includes a list of 17 repeat offenders, with the Great Lakes region having the highest failure rate for water quality samples, and Ohio rating worst among the states where water samples were drawn. Sections of these beaches have persistent contamination issues, and water quality samples failed to meet health standards more than 25 percent of the time over the past five years.

Here are the 17 repeat offenders:

• California: Malibu Pier, 50 yards east of the pier, in Los Angeles County

• Indiana: Jeorse Park Beach in Lake County (both monitored sections):

• Lake Jeorse Park Beach I 

• Lake Jeorse Park Beach II

• Massachusetts: Cockle Cove Creek in Barnstable County

• Maine: Goodies Beach in Knox County

• New Jersey: Beachwood Beach in Ocean County

• New York: Main Street Beach in Chautauqua County

• New York: Wright Park—East in Chautauqua County

• New York: Ontario Beach in Monroe County

• Ohio: Lakeshore Park in Ashtabula County

• Ohio: Arcadia Beach in Cuyahoga County

• Ohio: Euclid State Park in Cuyahoga County

• Ohio: Noble Beach in Cuyahoga County

• Ohio: Sims Beach in Cuyahoga County

• Ohio: Villa Angela State Park in Cuyahoga County

• Ohio: Edson Creek in Erie County

• Wisconsin: South Shore Beach in Milwaukee County

The full report card and zip code searchable map are available online, as well as a guide to finding a clean beach.

How to eventually make all U.S. beaches superstars? NRDC offers evergreen solutions such as protecting streams and wetlands and boosting green infrastructure.

NRDC’s infographic illustrates how natural solutions can keep beaches clean: