The once-filthy Charles River is mostly safe for swimming and is
getting cleaner by the year, but new DNA tests are being launched to
determine whether persisting bacteria is from human or animal waste,
officials said.
``There's a lot of work still to be done,'' said volunteer
environmental activist Roger Frymire. ``There's a reason no swimming
beaches have been opened along the Charles River.''
The river's bacteria levels mostly meet the state's swimming
standards, but swimming is still not an encouraged activity because of
polluted sediment on the bottom and because the 10-year cleanup plan is
ongoing. Yesterday, the federal Environmental Protection Agency gave the
river a grade of ``B'' for its cleanliness - the same grade it received
last year.
But that grade is up from a ``D'' in 1995, when the river only met
swimming standards 39 percent of the time. Today, the river is swimmable
91 percent of the time.
In addition to announcing DNA tests that will help scientists
determine if fecal coliform found in the river is from humans or
animals, the EPA announced a $400,000 grant to help the Charles River
Watershed Association in its cleanup effort. The grant is among nearly
$15 million awarded yesterday to 20 watershed groups nationwide.
``The Charles River is a treasured resource within our urban
landscape,'' said state Environmental Affairs Secretary Ellen Roy
Herzfelder. ``(The cleanup initiative) will help ensure that the Charles
continues to be a source of beauty for all to enjoy.''
Frymire, a former MIT student who kayaks the river and tests the
water, said a main problem stalling the cleanup is old pipes coming from
businesses and roadways dumping pollution into the river. Frymire said
he's personally counted 300 pipes flowing into the river, some of which
still release sewage.
Frymire said if the cleanup stays on schedule, the river should be
totally safe for swimming within three years. He suggested that Boston
dredge contaminated sediment from a section of the river and reopen a
beach in the near future.
``It would be better than spending the money to open a few pools,''
he said.