Connecticut River Water Advisory Lifted

Connecticut River water quality advisory from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has been lifted today after results from samples taken on Monday showed that the bacteria levels from all river testing sites were well below state standards.

The Monday sample results that were returned on Tuesday showed that e.coli bacteria from three sites in the Connecticut River had readings of: 72 colonies per 100 milliliters of water tested in Greenfield, at the confluence of the Deerfield River at the Montague City bridge; 54 colonies at the Sunderland Bridge; and 77 colonies in Northampton at the Bike Path Bridge, the new test location. No samples were collected from the previous monitoring location at the Northfield Bridge.

The MDPH standard for e.coli for bathing waters is 235 bacterial colonies per 100 ml tested.

The water quality samples in the Connecticut River were undertaken starting last week after flooding from Hurricane Irene inundated the area; including the Greenfield Waste Water Treatment Plant, which at the time discharged untreated sewage into the Deerfield and Connecticut rivers. The Greenfield plant has since been repaired and is currently operating normally.

With the lifting of the advisory for the Connecticut River, the water quality is now safe for bathing, wading, fishing and other recreational uses. MassDEP has also discontinued the daily water samples from the river.