Report: Go to South Boston to Enjoy Some of the Cleanest Beaches Around the City

A new report has recognized South Boston as having some of the cleanest urban beaches in the Boston Harbor area. This news is based on an annual water quality report card from the nonprofit Save the Harbor and Save the Bay.

City Point and Pleasure Bay beaches in South Boston received perfect scores for cleanliness in the report. These beaches were the only two of the 15 metropolitan beaches named in the report. Other high-scoring locations include M Street Beach and Carson Beach.

Outside South Boston, Nantasket Beach in Hull and Revere Beach also received strong marks in the report, which evaluated public beaches based on their frequency of being deemed safe for swimming.

Chris Mancini, executive director of Save the Harbor and Save the Bay, said Boston has some of the "best swimming beaches in the country."

"Almost all of them are on or within half a mile of public transportation. So take the blue line to Revere; take the red line down to South Boston," he said in an interview with WBUR Boston. "It's a great scene. It's great water quality."

While many beach locations received similar grades to those of previous years, a number of them experienced decreases in water quality, including two beaches that have historically been considered clean: Savin Hill Beach in Dorchester and Nahant Beach. Both, however, are still regarded as safe for swimming.

Brian Arrigo, commissioner of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, noted to WBUR that despite the heavy rainfall New England has endured so far this year, beaches around Boston Harbor are safe for swimming. Officials recommend that beachgoers refer to the state's website for updated water quality information before heading to Boston's beaches this summer.