Seven Los Angeles County beaches have improved their water quality significantly over the past year, according to Heal the Bay.

Heal the Bay, an environmental nonprofit, released its annual Beach Report Card — which details the amount of pollution at California beaches in hopes of providing ocean-lovers with a guide on where to swim safely — on Thursday, May 22.

The report tracks water quality at 500 beaches across the state. Of those, the report said, 62 earned a place on this year’s “Honor Roll,” which highlights beaches that earn an A+ grade in three different weather conditions: summer dry, winter dry and wet weather.

“Los Angeles County has seven beaches on this year’s Honor Roll, a significant improvement, as no beaches were included in the last two reports,” the report said. “Most of these top-performing beaches are located along the Palos Verdes Peninsula or Malibu.”

South Bay beaches on the honor roll this year include Hermosa Beach at 26th Street, Long Point in Rancho Palos Verdes, Manhattan Beach at 28th Street and RPV’s Portuguese Bend Cove.

In L.A. County broadly, the honorees included Dockweiler State Beach at Grand Avenue, Nicholas Beach at the San Nicholas Canyon Creek mouth and Nicholas Beach west of the lifeguard tower, the report said.

Heal the Bay’s report noted that the improved water quality at L.A. County beaches likely correlates to the dry summer and winter over the past year — with average rainfall in 2024 and 2025 at 9% so far compared to California’s 10-year historical average.

“This marks a clear contrast to the previous two years, when intense and frequent rainfall significantly degraded beach water quality,” the report said. “In 2023-2024, California experienced 31% more rainfall than the 10-year average, and in 2022–2023, coastal counties received 50% more rain than usual during the winter.”

Less rain, the report added, means less stormwater runoff — which is considered the most significant source of ocean pollution — is entering the ocean.

With this year’s drier weather, water quality had a chance to improve, the report said — though Heal the Bay’s report card only tracks fecal bacteria levels in the ocean, and doesn’t account for other pollutants.

Heal the Bay, for example, has a separate initiative currently underway to track the impacts of the January L.A. wildfires on the ocean.

That program, dubbed Ash to Action, is specifically tracking metals and other fire-related contaminants that can negatively impact human health with prolonged exposure, Heal the Bay said.

“Both programs are rooted in science and public health, but each measures different risks,” the nonprofit wrote on social media. “We aim to serve the community by presenting facts and rigorously analyzed data via these two separate and distinct initiatives.”

As for the Beach Report Card, just one local beach made it on Heal the Bay’s “Beach Bummers” list this year — Santa Monica Pier.

Santa Monica Pier, according to Heal the Bay, is the second-most polluted on their list, and has kept its spot on the Beach Bummer for the three years in a row.

No other L.A. County beaches, though, were placed on the Beach Bummer list this year.

For more on the Beach Report Card, visit healthebay.org.