From Sound Rivers
RALEIGH — Two sites failed the Swim Guide test week: Buffaloe Road and Clayton Riverwalk. The water sampled at the Buffaloe Road canoe launch has failed to meet recreational water-quality standards seven out of 12 times since Memorial Day.
Where sites fail, boaters, swimmers and their pets should avoid the water or practice caution at these sites, as exposure may come with an increased risk of gastrointestinal illness and skin infections.
Swim Guide is an international water-quality program conducted locally by Sound Rivers, an environmental nonprofit based in Raleigh, New Bern and Washington with a mission to keep North Carolina’s waterways fishable, swimmable and drinkable.
Each week, a team of Sound Rivers’ volunteers gathers water samples at 52 popular recreation sites from the Raleigh-Durham area to the Pamlico Sound. The samples are tested for E. coli by Sound Rivers’ staff, and results are released to the public, providing an
easy way to find out where it’s safe to swim. Sound Rivers sample data provides a general guide to the health of the waterways within the vicinity of collected samples and should only be used for informational purposes. This data does not guarantee the sampled area is safe for swimming at all times. E. coli levels can change at any time and will typically increase after rain events.
Nineteen of the 52 sites are located in the Upper Neuse and Tar-Pamlico river basins: at the Hickory Hill boat ramp, Ledge Rock boat ramp, Beaver Dam Lake day-use area, Rolling View boat ramp, Highway 50 launch and recreation area, Upper Barton Creek boat ramp and Falls of the Neuse canoe launch; canoe launches at Buffaloe Road, Milburnie, Anderson Point and Poole Road in Raleigh; the River Walk and Neuse Golf Club in Clayton; Town Commons Park in Smithfield, and Clubhouse Beach, Clubhouse boat dock, Moccasin Dock, Pavilion Beach and Pavilion boat dock at Lake Royale near Louisburg.
