Puffers Pond Exceeds State Bacteria Limits for Safe Swimming
Puffers Pond. Photo: amherstma.gov
Town water testing at Puffers Pond on June 2 exceeded state safety limits for E.coli at both the north and south beaches. Sampling at the north beach produced a reading for E. coli of 307.6 MPN/100 ml and the sample at the south beach yielded a result of 770.1 MPN/100 ml. The state allowable limit for safe swimming is 235 MPN/100 ml. The town has not posted an advisory concerning swimming at the pond as of this writing (2:00 p.m. on June 6). Puffers pond was closed for much of last summer due to high E.coli counts.
Read weekly testing results here.
And so it begins. One of our most loved and used recreation areas will probably be unsafe for swimming for much of the summer. Like the issue of the potholes, the town has done very little (if anything at all) to fix this problem. But hey, we’re going to have a new library.