Understanding the Health of the River
Improving Letter Grades
“Today rowers will hope not to get to get wet, but if we work hard and invest wisely, a decade from now they’ll be able to go for a swim at Magazine Beach after the race.”
- John P. DeVillars, EPA New England Administrator, 1995.
- John P. DeVillars, EPA New England Administrator, 1995.
In 1995 the U.S. EPA set a goal of achieving a swimmable and fishable lower Charles River basin by 2005. Over the last 20 years, bacterial water quality has improved each year. This progress can be largely credited to the near elimination of combined sewage overflow (CSO) into the lower basin. Today, the river is largely improved. In 2017 and 2018 the river earned an A-, meaning that it meets E. coli based standards for swimming 70% of the time.
Source: EPA-Charles River Initiative, MWRA-CSOs and the Charles
To understand trends along the river read the CRWA's water quality reports.
For a detailed break-down of swimmability at North Point Park you can read our executive summary.
Source: EPA-Charles River Initiative, MWRA-CSOs and the Charles
To understand trends along the river read the CRWA's water quality reports.
For a detailed break-down of swimmability at North Point Park you can read our executive summary.