The Waterfest afternoon's community conversation circle focused on water quality within our watershed. The conversation opened with the reminder that water is a living conscious being, and supports many other conscious entities, all of whom we can form meaningful relationships with - the river remembers us, the river knows us, the river flows through us, the river is in us, we are the river.
This realization comes with much beauty, a sense of wholeness and belonging, that we are all ‘people of the river,’ and yet it also comes with a good deal of pain that we must address if we are to truly feel whole.
As you may know, the entirety of the estuary of the Mystic River is designated as impaired. Impaired is a legal term, meaning that a water body does not support its “designated use.” For more background on the meaning of designated uses and water quality standards and classifications more broadly, see this brand new and rather spiffy story map from CT DEEP.
In the somewhat confusing manner that water quality designations are made, the Mystic River has the designated use of its classification as “Coastal and Marine Surface Waters Class SB: Water sustainable for Marine fish, shellfish and wildlife habitat, shellfish harvesting for transfer to approved areas for purification prior to human consumption, recreation, industrial and other legitimate uses including navigation and industrial water supply”. Class SB is differentiated from class SA, in that it is a lower classification, and in plain language, this means that
The estuary is not considered suitable for fishing or shellfishing for direct consumption,
Commercial shellfish harvesting is allowed if oysters, clams, etc… must be moved to cleaner waters for purification before they are consumed - although the impaired designation indicates that at times bacterial contamination is often so high shellfish cannot be purified. This happens after every major rainfall event and at other times too, usually during the summer.
Recreational boating is allowed, as is other commercial navigation.
Swimming is not recommended, and where it typically occurs, Ledge Light Health District tests for bacteria frequently.
The river is designated for use by industry, including discharges and withdrawals.
In order to reach our desired goals of having the Mystic River be suitable for direct fishing, to support our local and regional aquaculture industry and restore our Pequot allies access to their ancestral fishing grounds, we will need to change the quality of the water to make these intended uses possible. Then we have to get our designation changed. The state does have a triennial review process to do so, although it last published information on its review process in 2019, and is due for another review. We are keen to make sure that our desired use of the Mystic River Estuary, one where life flourishes and fishing for direct consumption is not only allowed but healthy and one does not need to worry about contracting illnesses from the water, is achieved. Want to be part of that process? Let us know! info@alliancemrw.org
Other parts of the Mystic river are also designated as impaired, including a section of Whitford Brook - from the intersection of Gallup Hill and Shewville Hill Rds to where it exists the marshes near the confluence of Williams Brook and Whitford Brook - where the brook is not considered suitable for its designated use of supporting aquatic life, and has not been assessed for its ability to support recreation or fishing. Williams Brook also has a section - from above the wastewater treatment plant across Town Farm Rd from Meeting House Ln, to midway up its branch that connects to the small western outlet from Long Pond - is also considered impaired for its inability to support aquatic life, and has likewise not been assessed for its ability to support recreation or fishing. Of significant concern is that many parts of the Mystic River Watershed have not been assessed, which remains a major goal of our water quality working group. Volunteers welcome!!! There are many roles to play. info@alliancemrw.org
Knowing what we do know - that our known water quality issues are not only the excess fertilizers from lawns facilitating the flourishing of bacteria, but also are fecal bacteria coming from septics and leaking waste-water infrastructure, our conversation quickly turned to an often avoided topic - how do we prevent human waste from contaminating the ponds and streams and ultimately the Mystic River? We had a rather spirited and multi-faceted conversation around alternative septics systems, which Alliance supporter Tom Sanford had installed at his home for the tidy sum of $40,000 which is admittedly a steep price to pay as remarked upon by other participants who want to be part of the solution, but can’t afford such a costly upgrade. Municipal upgrades will also have a huge pricetag.
Nature may provide us with some or all of the solutions…and on the cheap. Tune in next time for an in-depth look at natural solutions to the run-off problems, and ways that wastewater can be treated on-site. In three words? Buffers, wetlands, and de-paving. Let trees, native vegetation, and soils do their thing. But we still have to do our part...
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