RED BANK: RIVER BACTERIA SOURCES LOCATED

Apr 28, 2017

Busted sanitary sewer lines in two locations along Marion Street in Red Bank were significant sources of bacteria winding up in the Navesink off Fair Haven, investigators said. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Environmentalists and government officials have found two culprits, just yards apart in Red Bank, believed to be contributing to a spike in human waste bacteria in the Navesink River, they said Thursday night.

And the mystery could not have been solved without a trio of specially trained sniffing dogs, an ecstatic Clean Ocean Action leader Cindy Zipf told redbankgreen.

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April 28, 2017 - 9:15 am |

FAIR HAVEN: NAVESINK RALLY RESUMES

Mar 8, 2017

After a winter’s break, an initiative dubbed ‘Rally for the Navesink‘ to reduce levels of fecal coliform in our beautiful river resumes tonight with a community-welcome meeting in Fair Haven.

On the agenda: oyster beds and boat waste.

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March 8, 2017 - 7:15 am |

NAVESINK: BACTERIAL HOTSPOTS IDENTIFIED

Dec 1, 2016

Zach Lees of Clean Ocean Action talks about tracking bacteria along storm sewers upland from Red Bank’s Marine Park Wednesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Aided by a trio of specially trained sniffing dogs, environmental detectives have zoomed in on particular locations in three towns that may be at least partly responsible for a recent spike in bacteria levels in the Navesink River, they reported Wednesday night.

At the final Rally for the Navesink event of 2016 organized after a ban on shellfish harvesting from 566 acres of the river last February, a coalition of groups identified specific sites where leaking sanitary sewer lines or septic systems in Red Bank, Fair Haven and Middletown may be contributing bacteria from human waste.

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December 1, 2016 - 7:00 am |

RED BANK: RIVER CONTAMINATION UPDATE SET

Nov 16, 2016

Five months after the series began in response to a sharp increase in fecal coliform contamination, a final Rally for the Navesink event of 2016 has been scheduled.

Organized by Clean Ocean Action and a handful of environmental advocacy groups, the periodic rallies began in June, attracting sizable audiences and offering both science-heavy updates on water quality and practical tips on keeping pollutants out of the waterway.

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November 16, 2016 - 8:41 am |

RED BANK: JUST A COUPLE OF WORKING SNIFFS

Sep 22, 2016

Scott and Karen Reynolds demonstrate the olfactory talents of Remi, right, and Sable (0bscured) in a conference room at Riverview Medical Center. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The effort to solve the mystery of elevated bacteria levels in the Navesink River is now in the paws of real experts.

Two dogs trained to bark when they smell fecal coliform with a “human signature” have been working the waterfront in Red Bank and Fair Haven in recent days, helping environmentalists and officials source-track fecal coliform contamination, which spikes whenever it rains.

On Wednesday night, the four-footed detectives came to Riverview Medical Center to show several dozen onlookers how it’s done.

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September 22, 2016 - 8:56 am |

RED BANK: BRING IN THE BACTERIA SNIFFERS

Sep 20, 2016

Karen Reynolds of Environmental Canine Services with Logan, checking out a storm drain in Bangor, Maine. They’re scheduled to participate in a Rally for the Navesink meeting in Red Bank Wednesday, when environmentalists will discuss plans to clean the river of fecal coliform bacteria, an effort that will involve Logan and two other canines trained to sniff out the bacteria to track its source.

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September 20, 2016 - 7:08 am |

RED BANK: CLEAN NAVESINK PLAN URGED

Sep 13, 2016

The Navesink is safe for boating, but that’s a “low bar” for quality, the group told Red Bank officials in a letter. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

A consortium of environmentalists, boaters and fishers is urging Red Bank officials to adopt measures to address recent spikes in bacterial contamination of the Navesink River.

As part of what it calls a “no-blame, find it, fix it” effort, the self-styled “Rally for the Navesink” group of seven organizations delivered a “letter to Red Bank” on the issue at Saturday’s Paddle the Navesink event at Maple Cove.

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September 13, 2016 - 5:59 am |

RUMSON: DOGS ENLISTED IN RIVER CLEANUP

Aug 12, 2016

Clean Ocean Action founder Cindy Zipf addresses a ‘Rally for the Navesink’ audience at the First Presbyterian Church in Rumson Thursday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Their species has been implicated as a likely suspect, but dogs may also be helpful in solving the mystery behind recent alarming spikes in bacterial pollution levels of the Navesink River, environmentalists say.

Canines trained to detect the presence of fecal coliform bacteria have been used to sniff water samples taken from the river, Clean Ocean Action attorney Zach Lees told attendees at a “Rally for the Navesink” held in Rumson Thursday night. And next month, they’re expected to be deployed in Red Bank and Fair Haven, to try to track down land-based sources of the bacteria, which occur in the intestines of warmblooded animals: humans, their pets and wildlife. More →

August 12, 2016 - 7:29 am |

Red Bank Green

Serving Red Bank and Greater Red Bank, NJ

RED BANK: RIVER BACTERIA SOURCES LOCATED

FAIR HAVEN: NAVESINK RALLY RESUMES

NAVESINK: BACTERIAL HOTSPOTS IDENTIFIED

RED BANK: RIVER CONTAMINATION UPDATE SET

RED BANK: JUST A COUPLE OF WORKING SNIFFS

RED BANK: BRING IN THE BACTERIA SNIFFERS

RED BANK: CLEAN NAVESINK PLAN URGED

RUMSON: DOGS ENLISTED IN RIVER CLEANUP