SALEM — It's a stretch of ocean that extends from Gales Point in Manchester-by-the-Sea to Marblehead Neck, and around the middle of last century, it was suffering.
By 1964, more than half of the 156 pipes that emptied into this water were delivering untreated sewage, according to Salem Sound Coastwatch, a nonprofit caretaker of the sound. Salem, Peabody, Beverly and Danvers were discharging an average 20 million gallons per day of untreated wastewater through a discharge pipe off the Beverly coast. Marblehead, meanwhile, had its own pipe for untreated sewerage off Tinker's Island.
Along with the sewage flowed industrial waste, grease and heavy metals, created in the tanneries and other factories that once supported the area's economy. A federal study in the late 1980s found Salem Harbor's level of metal contamination behind only Boston Harbor, which was the most polluted in the country.
Back then, the water was not safe for swimming. Today, however, it is.
"Things are much better," said Barbara Warren, executive director of Salem Sound Coastwatch.
Just how much better will be the focus of a two-day symposium Salem Sound Coastwatch is hosting at Endicott College on Friday and Salem State University on Saturday. The public is invited to both sessions, which begin at 9 a.m.
The event marks the 20th anniversary of Salem Sound Coastwatch, and Warren said the milestone presented a good opportunity to examine the health of the area the group is dedicated to protecting.
"It's a good time to assess, to take a look back and where you've been and to set a plan for the future," Warren said.
The progress includes the elimination of all unregulated discharge pipes. And since 1998, the South Essex Sewerage District has been more thoroughly treating the water it deposits in the sound. Until then, it was only removing solid waste. Its improved performance has earned the SESD recognition from the Environmental Protection Agency, Warren said.
More boats, 8,000 today compared to 5,000 in 1987, are on the water and the disposal of their waste is being better managed. The sound's first pump-out facility, which transports waste directly into the sewer system, came online in 1993. There are nine in operation now.
As of June 2008, Salem Sound became the North Shore's first "No discharge area." Boaters with specified types of sanitation devices are no longer allowed to dump within three miles of shore. Warren credited the cooperation of the harbormasters from Marblehead, Salem, Danvers, Beverly and Manchester for making it happen.
Smelt are back in the Crane and North rivers. Their return has been exciting but slow and delicate, as counts can be up one year and down the next.
"It's successful," Warren said, "but it's a challenge."
While the sound is safe for swimming, the remnants of the region's industrial past prevent the harvesting of shellfish. On Saturday, Devon Winkler from the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries will give a presentation that will contemplate whether such activity will be "forever off limits."
It is one of at least 17 different topics that will be addressed over the two days.
"What do the Sediments in Salem Sound Tell Us?," "Challenges of Climate Change Impacts to the Sound and its Residents," "Economic Value of a Healthy Salem Sound" and "How Safe is the Water in Salem Sound?" are among the tittles of presentations. Local college professors and experts from the state and Salem Sound Coastwatch will be speaking.
Tay Evans from the state Division of Marine Fisheries will talk about eelgrass. A vital habitat, a source of food and shelter for a variety of species, the grass has been shown to be declining in Marblehead and Salem harbors, said Susan Yochelson, Salem Sound Coastwatch's outreach coordinator. The grass needs sunlight, and the turbidity generated by boat activity could be impeding growth.
As New Englanders, we're lucky to live by the ocean, but a lot of people don't know too much about what's happening in it, Yochelson said. The symposium is a chance to change that.
"We want to give people the opportunity to understand what is going on in our ocean backyard," Yochelson said.
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