The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has reopened Silver Sands State Park beach in for swimming today in time for the Fourth of July holiday, after closing it earlier in the week because of high bacteria levels caused by heavy rain, something that .
Also reopened were Sherwood Island and Hammonassett Beach state park beaches.
An article by the Connecticut Post this week reported that Silver Sands beach was closed Wednesday, coincidentally to the release of a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council that said Connecticut’s beaches ranked only 26th out of 30 states tested in 2011 for water quality.
Local experts quoted by the article blamed the poor water quality at beaches in Connecticut on storm water runoff and sewer system overflows that occur during heavy rainstorms.
