INFORMATION #2 07-29-1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mississippi River is found to hold high bacteria levels ASSOCIATED Pl°,ESS Inadequate treatment of sewage appears to be harming water qual- ity in much of the Mississippi Riv- er from Minneapolis to the Gulf of Mexico, a U.S. Geological Survey study has found. Researchers found that in many parts of the river, concentrations of fecal coliform bacteria from human and animal wastes exceed federal limits that were set to pro- tect swimmers. The high levels of bacteria, which survive only briefly in river water, are apparently due to the incomplete treatment of domestic sewage, the agency said in its re- port issued Monday. The $7 million, five-year study also shows that sewage may be diluted as much as a thousandfold after being mixed into the Missis- sippi. Bob Hirsch, chief hydrologist for the Geological Survey, said the dozens of contaminants measured in the study of the Mississippi and its tributaries "represent a report card on our cleanup efforts on the streams and rivers that drain nearly half the country." "Because this is the first evalua- tion ever attempted on this scale, it's hard to talk about trends or what areas show improvement or failure," Hirsch said. The study started in 1987, when the Geological Survey began tak- ing samples of river water from near St. Louis to the Gulf of Mexi- co. The effort was expanded in 1990 to cover the 1,928 miles of the river from Minneapolis to the Gulf. The Geological Survey, the na- tion's largest water-resources in- formation and science agency, measures water quality and quan- tity in all 50 states. Its study on the Mississippi was led by Robert Meade, a senior hydrologist. Meade stressed that he and oth- er agency scientists were deter- mined to measure the river's wa- ter quality without preconceived notions. The scientists took thousands of water and sediment samples from the river from 1987 through 1992. Mississippi, Minnesota rivers 'threatened A national environmental group Wednesday cited the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers as being among the nation's "20 most threat- ened" streams. The group, American Rivers, said the Mississippi's health is threat- ened by locks and dams, flood-control protects and pollution. It said the Minnesota is threatened by contaminated runoff and silt from farms and city streets, and by an influx of inadequately treated sewage. American Rivers, which is based in Washington, D.C., issued s'imi- ~ lar warnings about the two rivers last year. The group is involved in programs to Improve the management and water quality of both. rivers. -- Dean Rebuffonl <~ + ~ ~' T}- ; }: u ~ a ~ p r i w ~