Over 30 people gathered near King’s Beach on Friday to celebrate the work of the three-month-long initiative intended to make the beach safe to swim in.

King’s Beach’s water quality issues dates back nearly a century, when Stacey’s Brook, which empties into the beach, was converted into a sewer and stormwater system for both Lynn and Swampscott. In other words, King’s Beach receives daily drainage, unlike most other Boston Harbor-area beaches. The ultraviolet (UV) pilot program, launched on June 2, utilizes UV light to kill bacteria in the stormwater drainage before it reaches the ocean, ultimately creating a cleaner beach for Swampscott and Lynn residents.

“The bottom line is, we have the ability, we have the technology, whether it’s this solution or something else to clean this beach,” said Lynn Mayor Jared Nicholson. “What we need to provide together is the will to get it done.” 

The Swampscott-Lynn beach has not always been the safest, having received the lowest rank among 15 beaches inspected in the Save the Harbor/Save the Bay’s 2024 water quality report card. In 2023, King’s Beach failed nearly half of its water quality tests, according to Lynn’s website. 

The Lynn Water and Sewer Commission separated the sewer and stormwater systems about 25 years ago, but there is the potential issue that not all pipes are fully separated and additional leaks continue. Swampscott lined about half of its pipes two years ago and has begun to treat the remaining areas, but the contamination has not gone away. Untreated water and land-based bacteria from fertilizers still are the two major contributors to the pollution.

Since the UV pilot program’s launch there has only been one day in the past 30 where the water at King’s Beach has been deemed unsafe to swim due to high bacteria levels, according to the program’s published testing results. Student interns have tested the water at King’s Beach for bacteria as well as chlorine and ammonia.

State Sen. Brendan Crighton (3rd Essex District) told the crowd that King’s Beach had historically served as a sense of pride for the Swampscott-Lynn community, where people have come to enjoy the summer and spend time with family and friends.

“I’ve lived in Lynn my entire life,” said Crighton. “I can’t remember ever once swimming in King’s Beach.” 

He shared that the current attempt to clean King’s Beach took time and many difficult decisions. Crighton commended the community for coming together and putting in the work to make it happen. 

“We have a lot more work to do and we will continue to do that work in a collaborative fashion,” said Crighton. 

State Rep. Jennifer Armini (D–Essex) and US Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) were also in attendance.

While the pilot program has appeared to produce many desirable results, it has also come at a cost to some beachside residents. 

A few people showed up to the ribbon cutting ceremony with signs reading “cease and desist the public nuisance” and “stop the noise violations.”

The UV units are set up across the street from King’s Beach at the intersection of Eastern Avenue and Humphrey Street. They constantly emit noise and fumes. On top of that, in the middle of June, when the system clogged due to a large seaweed buildup, several homes on Ocean Terrace in Lynn, flooded due to the water backup. 

“This is in violation of the Massachusetts 310 CMR 7.10 noise regulation,” said Joe Negri, who lives across the street from King’s Beach and the UV units. 

The 310 CMR 7.10 regulation prohibits creating “unnecessary emissions” of sound, in an effort to reduce noise pollution, according to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.

Some local residents shared that they are not against the beach clean-up, but they argued that the constant noise and disruption is an infringement on their peace. They are asking of the UV project to be shut down from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Negri expressed his frustration with the fact that neither Swampscott nor Lynn conducted a sound survey before the project started. 

“The city needed to do this correctly, and they didn’t,” said Negri. 

Swampscott’s interim Town Administrator Gino Cresta acknowledged protesters, while also expressing his support for the initiative.

“I know it’s been some inconvenience,” Cresta said in his speech at the ribbon cutting. “But I know it’s the right thing to do.”

Beachgoers are able to check the bacteria levels at the Department of Public Health’s interactive website. The data is on a 24-hour lag, however. 

At the time of writing, the site lists King’s Beach as closed on the Swampscott side.