SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine — South Portland summer hotspot Willard Beach has been added to the Department of Environmental Protection's impaired waters list for elevated bacteria levels.
According to a Thursday press release from the City of South Portland, now that Willard Beach has been added to the list it will give the city better access to DEP funding for water quality improvements.
"Willard Beach is being added to the impaired waters list because bacteria concentrations
consistently exceed MHB’s beach action value (safe swimming threshold). An urban beach nestled into a residential neighborhood, the Willard Beach watershed is made up of 41% impervious surfaces (i.e. pavement and buildings)," the city said. "This means there is less natural landscape to absorb potential pollutants, like animal feces and lawn chemicals, before they are discharged to the beach water via the stormwater system. The City is also working to upgrade aging piped infrastructure and ensure that wastewater isn’t entering the stormwater system."
According to the city, they have been partnering with DEP's Maine Healthy Beaches Program (MHB) since 2003 to monitor and report the beach water quality at Willard.
The city said Willard Beach will remain open as normal this summer, as they continue to monitor the water's bacteria levels twice each week from Memorial Day to Labor Day—as it has in previous years.
If you plan to visit Willard Beach, you can find a link on the city's website for water status updates. In addition, visitors are advised to check the water quality flag at the main entrance of the beach before embarking on water activities.
A yellow or orange flag means contact with the water is "not advised," the release stated. The city also discourages swimmers from "swimming or playing" near the stormwater outfall because it sometimes contains elevated bacteria levels. Additional signage has also been placed to discourage water activities in the area.
Willard Beach will appear on the DEP's list in Category 5-B: Coastal Designated Beaches Impaired for Bacteria Only: Based on Enterococci bacteria monitor data collected from 2018-2022.
The report will be available on DEP's Opportunity for Comment page and DEP will accept public comments from June 15 to July 22.
The city plans to submit for DEP funding to help develop a plan establishing a formal framework for "identifying and eliminating pollution sources more competitive." In addition, the city said they intend to apply for a Clean Water Act 604(b) grant to create a Watershed Management Plan next year.
"Access to these critical funding opportunities for Willard Beach will be enhanced," South Portland Stormwater Program Coordinator Fred Dillon said, who pointed out that the city has been awarded 604(b) and 319 grants for improvements to its Trout Brook. "This has the potential to improve water quality at the beach in the coming years."
"Willard Beach is extremely important to our community, and City staff take our roles as its
stewards seriously," Dillon added. "We’ll continue pursuing every pathway that leads to cleaner water at the beach."