Through Swim Watch, MREAC monitors water quality at twenty-nine sites throughout the Miramichi River watershed. Beginning in 1993, water samples have been collected during June, July and August at seven sites weekly and all twenty-nine twice during the summer season. The samples are sent to the NB Department of Environment laboratory in Fredericton for fecal coliform testing. The results are returned to MREAC's office where the data is collected, tabulated and made available to interested stakeholders upon request. The results are also summarized in MREAC's bi-annual newsletter.

According to the Guidelines for Canadian Recreational Water Quality, the allowed limit of E. coli in recreational water samples is 200CFU/100ml. If any samples exceed this limit, MREAC staff resamples the site, and any site exceeding the limit for three consecutive samples is considered unsafe for recreational purposes and is closed. The purpose of this project is to monitor the fecal coliform levels at public beaches and common swimming holes throughout the watershed in order to protect the health of recreational users.

Summer Sampling