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Charles River gets “A-” rating by EPA for 2013 (9/3/2014)
Having struggled at the “B+” level for a number of years the Charles River was finally upgraded to a first-ever “A-” rating by the EPA at a ceremony in Boston in this week. From the press release (emphasis ours): “Here’s what a clean Charles River means: it’s as simple as seeing how many…
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BU dean jumps in Charles River (5/5/2013)
Definitely wearing the wrong sort of “suit” for swimming in the Charles this time of year… Full story here.
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A river that is clean and clear again (10/11/2011)
The Boston Globe has a nice recap of the people and the time that has gone into rehabilitating the Charles. It truly has been a multi-generational effort. As we say, our existence is a salute to their hard work! Full article here.
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Kendall power plant to reduce draw on Charles (2/2/2011)
In some welcome news GenOn announced today that their Kendall Cogeneration plant, located just over the Longfellow Bridge, will be reducing its water intake from the Charles River by a whopping 95% thanks to an innovative and environmentally beneficial steam exchange. Currently the plant uses water from the Charles to cool its turbines. …
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Alligator captured in Charles River (9/10/2010)
From the “it was bound to happen” department comes today’s story in the Boston Globe about an alligator being captured in the Charles River. Most likely this was someone’s illegal pet that got too big for comfort. Lucky for him (or her) on being caught — an alligator would definitely not survive a…
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A river that’s fit for swimming (5/17/2010)
There was an interesting article in the Globe today that covered some of the past and present efforts at making the Charles a favorite swimming spot again. Most recently we have the formation of the Charles River Water Quality Commission which “will start testing the water for bacterial counts and clarity at four…
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Water main break bad for Charles River (5/4/2010)
Most residents in the area are well aware of the interruption to the drinking water supply due to a major break in a 10′ pipe feeding Boston and surrounding towns. While one might think 8 million gallons of drinking water an hour flowing into the Charles would be a good thing it is…
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Rainstorms causes sewer discharge into Quincy Bay (3/18/2010)
Ten inches of rain over 72 hours resulted in a sewage discharge into the Southern end of the Boston Harbor. Choice quote: “Bruce Berman, a spokesman for the Boston-based advocacy group Save the Harbor-Save the Bay …. said “I absolutely understand why people are upset. Twenty years ago, we released 280 million gallons…
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NYC sewage system woes (11/23/2009)
The New York Times has a great article today on the state of the NYC sewage system. Many of the problems discussed are similar to what the greater Boston area faces . These include decrepit infrastructure and rainwater being routed into the sewage system instead of absorbed into the ground. See the CRWA’s…
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Boston Metro reports on the status of river swimming (8/18/2009)
There is a pretty balanced blurb in the Metro today about swimming in the river. The article correctly points out that one of the main hurdles to the return of river swimming is adjusting the public’s perception of the river. From the article: “I’d love to jump in, but I’m not going to,”…
