Additional Little River Bacteria Testing Granted

The North Hampton Select Board unanimously voted Monday to authorize the use of $8,670 in town meeting-appropriated funds to continue the Little River bacteria testing program.

The money, which will come out of the , will fund a contract with Forrest Bell Environmental Associates to continue testing a river many public safety officials feel was .

Dennis Cote, the town's chief and public health officer, said Shel-Al Campground mobile home park has "stepped up" and "dramatically reduced" the problems with its breached septic system, which contributed to .

There are still "a couple areas of town that feed" the Little River watershed "that could be a concern," though, based on data collected last year during wet weather events, according to Cote.

Cote said more testing is needed to identify and correct these problems, and Cote said the money authorized Monday will be used for microbial testing to pinpoint the type of fecal matter in the water as well as establish a baseline along the watershed.

included the use of two specialized fecal bacteria-detecting dogs in the first year. Cote has since decided not to use the dogs in the first year of the testing, though, because of how Shel-Al has "stepped up" and because he said the town has "not let the water table recover enough" to the point that runoff can be excluded as a continuing factor.

Cote said there are still strong indications the bacteria stems from runoff issues, so he said it would be best to focus on fixing those issues in the first year and then, if needed, bring in the dogs for the second year to determine whether the fecal matter is from a human or from a particular type of animal.

Selectmen made only brief comments Monday before approving the testing contract, stating it should be approved because money has already been appropriated to fund the contract and because it's an important matter of public safety.

"How could we not want to do this?" Larry Miller asked rhetorically.