Water testing along the Port Hawkesbury waterfront will continue.
During Tuesday’s regular monthly meeting of Port Hawkesbury Town Council, CAO Terry Doyle said water around the Strait Area Yacht Club and wharf area was tested last summer and this fall after concerns were expressed by members of the town’s waterfront advisory committee. While there were concerns about the results from the summer test, the CAO said the results from the fall test were “very good.”
Testing water for recreational purposes, boating or swimming, is regulated and there are guidelines for Canadian recreational water quality underscored in a 150-page document, noted Doyle.
Town Councillor Hughie MacDougall, who also called for the tests, called the report “interesting.”
The CAO suggested that measures be put in place, starting in late spring, to have a testing company do the required testing to determine what’s safe in that area. He said this would entail a series of three tests per week. Doyle said testing is done through the Nova Scotia Lifeguard Association, and he said the Halifax Regional Municipality conducts regular water testing.
While such tests are usually done through in-house staff training, Doyle said the town is looking for a testing company to provide an accurate assessment of the situation. Doyle expects the town will have a process in place to resume testing in the spring.
