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  • Home
  • COVID-19
    • At-Home Test Kits
    • COVID-19 Booster Information
    • COVID-19 Testing
    • Weekly Updates for COVID-19 Positivity Rates Within the Torrington Area Health District (TAHD) Jurisdiction
    • Self-Isolation and ​Self-Quarantine
  • Programs & Services
    • Environmental Health >
      • Healthy Homes
      • Lead Information
      • Asbestos >
        • Overview
        • Asbestos Abatement
        • Vermiculite Concerns
      • Beauty Salon and Barber Shop Licensing
      • Bed Bug Information
      • Building Conversions, Additions and Accessory Structures
      • Day Care Centers
      • General Septic System Information >
        • Steps to Constructing a Building with No Public Sewers or Public Water
        • On-site Subsurface Sewage Disposal Systems
        • Repair and Replacement
      • Lake and Pond Swimming Areas
      • Noise Regulations
      • Private Water Wells
      • Public Swimming Pools
      • Radon Awareness
      • Soil Testing
      • Tattoo Salons
      • Water Testing Laboratories
    • Community Health >
      • Suicide Prevention
      • Opioid Epidemic
      • Bats & Rabies
      • Bed Bugs
      • Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program
      • Communicable and Chronic Disease Program
      • Emergency Preparedness
      • Fit Together NWCT
      • Immunization >
        • Immunization Program
        • Connecticut Vaccine Program (CVP)
        • Connecticut Immunization Information System (CT WiZ)
      • Community Health Needs Assessment
      • Lyme Disease & Ticks >
        • About Lyme Disease
        • Tick Removal & Testing
      • TAHD Medical Reserve Corp
      • Travel Health
    • Food Protection Inspection Program >
      • Overview of Food Protection Section
      • Guidelines for Food Service at Temporary Events
      • Itinerant Vendor / Mobile Vendor Food Service Requirements
      • FDA Food Code Information >
        • Testing Organizations
      • Qualified Food Operator
      • Foodborne Illness Investigation
      • Preoperational Guidelines & Application for Food Service Establishments
      • Keeping Food Safe During Extended Power Outage
      • Procedures to Safely Reopen After Storm
      • Food Service Establishment Inspections
    • Local Regulations
  • Forms & Applications
    • General Forms & Applications
    • Food Service Forms & Applications
    • Fee Schedule
  • Contact
  • About Us
    • Overview
    • Board Members >
      • Board of Health Meeting Minutes
    • TAHD Staff
    • Satellite Office Locations
    • District Municipalities
    • Needs Assessment >
      • Litchfield County Community Health
      • Executive Summary
      • Litchfield County Transformation Grant
    • Public Health Introduction Video
    • Employment Opportunities
  • News & Events
    • Newsletter
    • Weather Related Closures

Lake and Pond Swimming Areas

The northwest part of Connecticut is dotted with numerous lakes, ponds and streams that provide a major attraction for summer recreational activities. The Torrington Area Health District has, for a number of years, maintained an extensive bathing water sampling program for lakes and ponds in our member towns. We test many different locations at more than 30 lakes and ponds in the Health District including municipal and lake association beaches, swim clubs and boat launch sites. The sampling period extends from the end of May through the month of August. Beaches at State parks are tested by the State Department of Environmental Protection, and information about their water quality can be obtained by calling 1-860-424-3051 during the operating season. Federally owned flood control dams used for recreation swimming are under the jurisdiction of the Army Corp of Engineers.

The suitability of bathing water is evaluated using a concentraion of E. Coli organisms less than or equal to 235 per 100 milliliters which is generally considered satisfactory for a single sample from a bathing area. Decisions to close a swimming area are based on an overall review of the bathing water quality and watershed, not on a single high bacteria test. The bacterial water quality in the lakes and ponds monitored in the Health District has been historically very good. Many of the lakes and ponds do suffer from nutrients from lawn fertilizers and agricultural operations and they have serious weed and algae problems that detract from their appeal.

The sanitary quality of bathing water is dependent on a number of factors. An imaginary line drawn around a lake encompassing all the land that eventually drains into that lake defines what is referred to as a "watershed". Activities that take place on the watershed can have an impact on water quality. Failing septic systems, large farms, storm water runoff as well as land development have an effect on the overall water quality. The number of swimmers also can effect short-term water quality. Large numbers of bathers in a confined beach area tend to increase the bacteria levels. As the number of bathers decreases these levels fall back due to the large amount of dilution water and the constant current movements of the lake or pond. In some very small bathing ponds that are subject to heavy use, it is sometimes necessary to add fresh water from wells or springs to the pond. The rule of thumb for small ponds with inlet and outlet flow is that there should be a minimum of 1000gallons\day\bather available for dilution.

The resident duck and goose population around some of the ponds and lakes in the Health District has increased tremendously in recent years. Although their waste does not contain any organisms that produce illness in humans, it does have a high concentration of fecal bacterial that can effect water sample results and the accumulation of droppings on the beach are aesthetically objectionable. There are a number of wildlife management practices that can be instituted to make the sites less attractive to waterfowl. Waterfowl should not be encouraged to live on a recreational lake or pond by feeding them. Up-to-date information on beaches and ponds can be obtained by contacting the Health District during our sampling season.

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Torrington Area Health District
350 Main Street, Suite A
Torrington, CT 06790-5000
(860) 489-0436  Fax  (860) 496-8243 
Hours
​-Monday, Tuesday, Thursday- 8:00am to 4:00pm.
-Wednesday-
8:00am to 6:00pm.
​-Friday-
8:00am to 1:00pm.
 
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TAHD provides local public health services for the towns of Bantam, Bethlehem, Canaan, Cornwall, Goshen, Harwinton, Kent, Litchfield, Middlebury, Morris, Norfolk, North Canaan, Plymouth, Salisbury, Thomaston, Torrington, Warren, Watertown & Winsted.
© 2023 Torrington Area Health District. All Rights Reserved.
The Torrington Area Health District is an equal opportunity provider, and employer.  If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form found online at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html , or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form.  You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form.  Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at program.intake@USDA.gov.