Overview:
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services has issued a fecal bacteria advisory for the town beach at Canaan Street Lake due to elevated levels of E. coli. The advisory discourages swimming and wading in the water as E. coli is an indicator for other organisms that cause diarrhea and vomiting. The cause of the E. coli is unclear without further research, but it could come from a large bird population, runoff, failing septic systems, or wildlife presence. Despite the warning, some town beach regulars were not deterred and plan to continue swimming in the lake.
CANAAN – As the sun beat down Friday morning, the town beach at Canaan Street lake was nearly empty except for a patchwork of bird footprints, six ducks and a few beachgoers.
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services issued a fecal bacteria advisory for the beach because of elevated levels of E. coli Thursday. Under this advisory, DES discourages swimming and wading in the water. The bacteria are indicators for other organisms that cause diarrhea and vomiting.
DES typically tests the water at the town beach about once a month in the summer. Staff will do more frequent sampling until the water is safe, Tom Swenson, interim beach program coordinator for DES said Friday
Despite the warning, some town beach regulars were not deterred Friday.
Ethan Boyce swims in Canaan Street Lake every morning. If he weren’t busy on Friday he said he would have followed his usual routine regardless of the advisory.
“I’ll be in here tomorrow morning,” Boyce said as he sat on the beach after a morning walk.
Fecal bacteria advisories are nothing new for Canaan Street Lake, which also supplies drinking water for Canaan.
Boyce, a Canaan native, said while this is the first advisory of the year there is typically one each summer.
E. coli testing is “like a snapshot in time,” Swenson said; levels can change quickly or vary across one beach.
“You could take a sample and just happen to scoop up some duck poop and then two minutes later you go and take a sample and you don’t,” he explained.
E. coli comes from human and animal waste introduced by swimmers, wildlife, septic systems, or runoff.
The advisory is different from cyanobacteria alerts that are caused by an overgrowth of the naturally-occurring toxic bacteria. The problems are “two very distinct things” with different health risks, Swenson said.
Last summer DES issued only one fecal bacteria advisory at the Canaan Street Lake town beach.
Still, the advisory procedure is so familiar that Boyce said he and friends joke that they should post the bright yellow advisory sign to deter people when the beach is too busy.
The small town beach is known for having many human and avian visitors.
The cause of the E. coli in this case is unclear without further research, but Swenson agreed it could come from what locals say is a large bird population.
In the early mornings, Boyce said he often sees “well over 100” birds, including ducks and geese, on the beach.
Many people disregard posted signs and feed the ducks a “buffet,” beachgoer Marcia Littlefield said. The birds are so used to the treatment that they might come up and bite your toes in search of food.
“It says don’t feed the ducks, I follow the rules,” Littlefield said.
A teacher at Mascoma Valley Regional High School, Littlefield comes to the beach two to three times a week in the summer. She did not know about the advisory until she arrived on Friday but planned to “stick around for a while” on the beach.
The Town of Woodstock also issued a no swimming advisory for Kedron Brook Friday due to high E. coli levels, according to a news release. New testing results are expected Monday.
NH DES publishes fecal bacteria and cyanobacteria reports through its healthy swimming mapper online at https://tinyurl.com/6pcxev5y.
In Vermont, water quality is tested weekly at state parks. Results are posted online at vtstateparks.com/swimming.
