How dirty is the schuylkill?

Question

Me and my friends go to swim in the schuylkill river sometimes, but lately it jsut seems more and more S****y when we go in. the water is a murky shade of green, and its extremely salty. it smells like dead fish for miles around. could someone please tell me whart exactly is in it? Plz no joke like "everything" or "water" or "what isn't" I need to know exactly how unsanitary this thing is. are we talking like nuclear damage here? Thats can't be good...

Answer 1

It depends on where you are. The salt line moves up and down, depending on rainfall within the basin. It's not so bad that Philadelphia doesn't draw from it to supply West Philadelphia or that Aqua Pennsylvania abandons it plant which draws from the river. The water is harder than Delaware River water but isn't that bad otherwise.

Answer 2

the Schuylkill River is again in danger because of development along its banks and an aging sewage-, and water-treatment infrastructure. Today the river is plagued with pollution, especially stormwater and untreated sewage overflowing into the river from local communites. But because the Bush administration has cut funding for managing and treating sewage, it's a health problem that puts communities increasingly at risk.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, 36 of the 118 sewage treatment plants in southeastern Pennsylvania have existing or projected overloads. An overload results in sanitary sewer overflows that spill untreated sewage into waterways of the Philadelphia region.

Typically overflows are the result of system deterioration, lack of maintenance, or excessive intake. The overflows of many of these facilities run into waters within the Schuylkill River watershed. Contact with sewage-infested water can cause gastrointestinal and respiratory illnesses. Exposure poses the greatest risk for children, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems. Sewage-contaminated water also costs more to treat before it becomes safe to drink. Keeping sewage out of the Schuylkill River is essential for protecting the drinking water supply for the roughly 900,000 customers in and around Philadelphia, as well as keeping the river clean for recreational uses. Darlene Messina, a health professional working for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, has lived near the Schuylkill River for 27 years. A competitive rower for the past 20 years, she practices 5 days a week, 9 months a year, on the Schuylkill. "Sometimes when I'm on the river, I see discharges and you can't really tell if they're legal or not. It's disturbing and I think it concerns everybody on the river," explains Darlene. She has since turned her angst into action by founding Friends of the Manayunk Canal, a conservation and advocacy group dedicated to preserving the canal and protecting and improving the watershed.