Beneath the surface of the Merrimack River
By Drake Lucas , Staff writer
Eagle-Tribune
Summertime on the Merrimack River means boats, Jet Skis and sunbathers, but while most people enjoy being on the river, few know what is in it.
Now, the Merrimack River Watershed Council is starting a long-term study of the river, from the New Hampshire border to Newburyport. It will record changes to the water quality, and it hopes to use the information to find and correct problems.
"We should have a consistent knowledge and understanding of what is happening on the river," said Christine Tabak, executive director of the council.
Other studies have looked at water quality and specific areas of the river, but water-resource manager Tracie Sales said this study is unique in that it will be a continuous study to set up constant monitoring of the entire river for years to come.
Volunteers began testing various spots along the river last month for signs of pollution, including how much acidity, salt and oxygen are present. They are also looking at how the river flows to watch out for change.
Out on the river
Two volunteers made a trip last week to the upper area of the river from the New Hampshire border to Lowell to take repeat samplings of eight test sites, usually near tributaries or water-treatment plants.
Bill Wells, a Lowell resident, volunteered his boat and his time for the four-hour trip. He followed a global positioning system to find each of the eight sites that had been tested before. "I like the water clean," said Wells who has had his boat since 1996 and said he stays out on the river as long as possible every year - into December if he can.
Ellyse Briand, 22, a recent psychology graduate from University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and Alex Maroon, 17, a Methuen senior at Central Catholic High School, took turns throwing a marked rope into the water to look at the color and measure the depth. Next, one of them would lower a monitoring probe to various levels while the other noted the temperature, salt, dissolved solids, oxygen and conductivity.
It was their first trip out after one day of training earlier this summer.
"I like being on the river. I have a boat and dock at my house," said Maroon, who said he has lived on the river in Methuen all his life. "I would like to know a way to make the river better and cleaner."
It was the first time on the river for Barre resident Briand. She said it's a nice break from the tedious work of transcribing interviews for one of her professors and a way to help the environment.
"It's cool to be out on the river," she said. "It's a good experience. I'm learning."
Looking for trouble
The weekly tests are meant to set the standard for river conditions, so if there are any changes, the Merrimack River Watershed Council can find the problems. Levels at the different sites are recorded weekly and water samples are sent monthly to a local Environmental Protection Agency lab in Chelmsford for testing.
If bacteria levels spike, that can be an indication that sewage is being improperly dumped, either from boats or on shore. A high pH level shows the water's acidity is lower than normal, meaning chemicals such as some fertilizers might have been improperly dumped, reaching the river.
The council can then work to learn where the pollution is coming from to find a way to clean it up and educate people about the river.
The project is supported by the state Department of Environmental Protection and the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which is donating the GPS and testing equipment along with lab time to process the samples.
The long-term plan is to continue the testing and reach out to other groups that work along the river.
Lewis Zediana, chief operating engineer at the Tewksbury Water Treatment Plant, will be taking volunteers out on the stretch between Haverhill and Newburyport this week.
He said he has noticed an improvement in Merrimack River water quality since he started at the treatment plant in 1988 because of clean-ups at places upstream, including the Lowell Wastewater Plant.
But he said monitoring and continuing to improve the river's water is still important.
To him, the water is his job and his play - he often takes his boat out for enjoyment.
"I think it's a great project," he said. "People get better educated about the river."
The Merrimack River Watershed Council is still looking for volunteers to test the water and for boat owners who can take out the volunteers. For more information, contact the council at 978-275-0120 or visit merrimack.org.
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