Clean-Water Activist Swims Gowanus Canal in Protective Suit for Earth Day

An environmental activist swam part of the highly polluted Gowanus Canal for Earth Day, covered from head to toe in protective gear that shielded his skin, mouth, eyes and ears from the notorious toxic muck in the federal Superfund site.

Christopher Swain, 47, plunged into the water near Degraw street shortly after 2 p.m. Wednesday and swam just under a mile -- spending about 20 minutes in the contaminated water -- before NYPD officers asked him to cut the dip short due to approaching thunderstorms. He said he was doing the swim to call attention to the federal government's slow-moving cleaning efforts.

"If we can land a man on the moon we can clean up the Gowanus Canal," Swain said.

Swain had planned to swim the length of the 1.8-mile canal and said he'd be back to finish the job.

"You can't clean up the canal in a day and I guess I can't swim it in a day," he said, adding he'd work with the city to find an appropriate, safe time to do the swim.

About 100 people lined up on several of the eight bridges the canal runs under to cheer Swain on as he swam, monitored by a woman in a kayak paddling a few feet away. Some of his fans shouted sarcastic commentary, wondering why he would take such a risk, but cheered him on all the same.

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The 19th-century waterway was once a major transportation route; factories and fuel refineries operated there for years. It's now so polluted with industrial and sewer discharges that it must, by law, be cleaned up. The federal Environmental Protection Agency says contaminates include PCBs, which were banned in the U.S. in 1979. The regional EPA tweeted a warning against swimming in the canal, which runs through a narrow industrial zone near some of Brooklyn's wealthiest neighborhoods, a day before Swain took his dip.

Swain's dip was delayed a bit by NYPD security concerns and he almost didn't get into the water at all. Police said there's nothing illegal about swimming in the canal, although it's ill-advised, but anyone who does so risks contaminating other people when he or she gets out and needs to be thoroughly disinfected.

Swain was gargling hydrogen peroxide in his mouth as he approached reporters after the swim and assured everyone he was fine; police didn't give him trouble and Swain planned to take a bleach wash later Wednesday.

A dolphin that became stranded in the canal two years ago died after getting stuck, although biologists say it was likely due to the Dolphin’s age and declining health. 

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