Photo: James Rojas/WBZ NewsRadio
LYNN, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — There has been an effort to clean up wastewater pollution at King’s Beach, but mother nature has been getting in the way.
The City of Lynn and the town of Swampscott have teamed up to improve the water quality at King’s Beach. The King's Beach ultraviolet (UV) pilot program was launched on June 2, attempting to use UV light to kill wastewater bacteria which is primarily used at wastewater treatment plants.
According to the city, King's Beach failed nearly half of its water quality tests in 2023, forcing officials to keep the beach closed for nearly 90 percent of the summer. Lynn Mayor Jared Nicholson said it has been a long-standing concern.
"Kings Beach has been polluted for 100 years," said Nicholson. "For years we have as a community been so frustrated in our inability to swim in our only beach."
Unfortunately, Nicholson said the pilot program came to a halt on June 3 because of seaweed clogging the disinfectant technology.
"A very large amount of seaweed deposited as a result of the Nor'easter and it is yet to be flushed out," said Nicholson. "So that is absolutely something that is a hypothesis of what's been happening here as well."
Nicholson added that this is what the pilot program is for, designing around challenges and finding solutions to problems like seaweed. The project team is expected to have an update next week.
WBZ NewsRadio's James Rojas (@JamesRojasMMJ) reports.