A small group from the Nanticoke Watershed Alliance waded into the river yesterday at Cherry Beach in Sharptown to check out the clarity of the water.
This year, Delegate "Addie"" Eckardt (D-Cambridge) did the wading.
Shelly Baird, executive director of the Allaince, says, We go in and we walk in until we can no longer see her sneakers. Its an indicator of water clarity. And water clarity is very important because if that water is turbid and not so clear that sunlight can't get down to the organisms on the bottom, they die and decay and use up the oxygen."
It was part of it's Five Year Report which found that the water quality remains steady.
But that is not necessarily good.
Baird says, "So the overall grade remains around a C plus the biggest issues as in the years past has been the nitrogen levels especially in the Broad Creek area."
The environmental group gives the river an F for the amount of nitrogen that is in the watershed.
Author Beth Wasdinn author of the report, says much of that can be attributed to past development. "We've actually seen a lot of development in the Nanticoke over the last twenty years so. The amount of developed lands has increased over the last five years so we would want homeowners in particular to be more thoughtful about the things they're doing around their home."
She especially recommends upgrading septic tanks, which she says the state is helping out with.
As for water clarity the watershed got a C + over all.
Wasdin notes that, "The water clarity on this stretch of the river from the Seaford boat ramp through the Wodland Frry area down here to Cherry Beach hs seen a steady decline and that's something that concerns us.
Dissolved oxygen got a rating of A or B depending on the location in the watershed.
(See: Salisbury Daily Times)
