The Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership and Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Middlesex County run a volunteer pathogens monitoring program from May to September every Summer. On Thursdays we collect water quality samples at 6 non-bathing public access beaches along the Raritan River, and report the results on Friday afternoons. Our pathogens results for our Thursday July 7 monitoring suggest waters below the federal threshold for the Enterococcus bacteria at three sites: Piscataway, New Brunswick and South Amboy (indicated on the map below with green smiley faces). Suitable levels for primary contact should not exceed 104 cfu/100mL and these sites are below 104 colony forming units of Enterococci per 100mL. Per the EPA’s federal water quality standard for CFU primary contact, Pathogens/Enterococci levels are used as indicators of the possible presence of disease-causing bacteria in recreational waters. Waters at two of our sites, Ken Buchanan Waterfront Park in Sayreville and 2nd Street Park in Perth Amboy exceeded the federal threshold for Enterococci. Such pathogens may pose health risks to people fishing and swimming in a water body, please recreate on the river at your own risk.

Unfortunately, we were not able to sample at our Edison site this week due to a fire at the adjacent Ken Buc Landfill Tuesday night. Middlesex County officials shut off the street and evacuated the area to avoid smoke inhalation. The fire was deemed to have started as a result of dry conditions and high temperatures.

Middlesex Police and Emergency responders at the Edison Basin Boat launch after Tuesday’s fire, Photo Credits: Andrew Gehman

Special thanks to the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Middlesex County and Interstate Environmental Commission for their partnership, and to our crew of monitoring volunteers this week! See here for more information on our pathogens monitoring program.

Julisa, Jason, and Jocelyn reunited for water monitoring at Riverside Park, Photo Credit: Andrew Gehman.

Cristian Sanlatte taking a closer look at a small deer we spotted across the river at the Rutgers Boathouse, Photo Credit: Andre Gehman

As Andrew G. goes out in the water to grab our sample, the rest of the team observes and gathers data from the South Amboy shore, Photo Credit: Cristian Sanlatte