US Senator Ed Muskie (D-ME) Was Known for His Many Accomplishments, Including His Grpimdbreaking Work on the Environment. Born in Rumford, he served as Maine Governor. His work led to the passage of the Clean Air Act of 1970 and the Clean Water Act of 1972. He Served as Secretary of State during the Carter Administration and Later Ran for President.
As Mainers head to local waterways to swim, fish, paddle and cool off before the end of summer, fecal bacteria too often puts people’s health at risk. That’s the conclusion of a new report from Environment Maine Research & Policy Center. The study finds that 91% of the 68 monitoring locations across Maine experienced at least one day when E. coli bacteria reached potentially unsafe levels for swimming during 2024 and 2025 according to a press release issued late last week from Environment Maine.
The new report does not include bacteria on Maine’s coastal beaches, which the group documented separately last summer.
“Mainers rely on their rivers and lakes for a place to swim on a hot day, but sometimes the water isn’t as safe as it should be,” said John R umpler, Environment America’s Clean Water Director and Senior Attorney. “We ought to have access to clean, healthy water when we visit our waterways in Maine.”
Common sources of fecal indicator bacteria such as E. coli in waterways include sewage spills and overflows, stormwater runoff and failing spetic cystems. Each year, Americans suffer an estimated 87 million cases of illness associaed with swimming, paddling, boating or fishing in US waterways.
Some Maine waterways with recurring bacteria contamination are actively used for recreation. For example, the Presumpscot River offers paddling, fishing and swimming and posed health risks to swimmers at the Black Strap Canoe Lauanch in Falmouth on 44% of test days. 11 out of 12 Presumpscot lasting locations tested above safe limits on at least one day.
Communities in Maine can dramatically reduce sewage overflows and other sources of fecal bacteria, but infrastructure projects often require substantial resources. In Mane, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure improvements will require almost $200 million a year over 20 years, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Unfortunately, Congress only provided $26.5 million to Maine through the Clean WAter State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) during the government’s fiscal year 2026.
“When we invest in clean water infrastructure, we’re investing in every Mainer’s right to a safe place to cool off on these hot summer days” said Lisa Frank, Executive Director of Environment America. “The contamination shown in this report provides Maine leaders in Congress a powerful case for stepping up and closing this fundng gap, so that every waterway can be safer for swimming.”