Bacterial pollution monitoring is conducted by the Washington Department of Health, the Washington Department of Ecology, and by some counties, tribes, and local municipalities. In a given area the monitoring is often well coordinated and done on a regular basis at various locations. Unfortunately, monitoring is expensive and is often only done on a monthly basis, which may not catch contamination quickly enough to prevent harm. Before you harvest shellfish call the hotline at 1-800-562-5632 to see the status of your beach or visit the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website at: wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfish.