Wayland Board of Health hears summer findings as Lake Cochituate advisory is lifted

WAYLAND — September 18, 2023 — Wayland Board of Health hears the cyanobacteria data that closed and reopened Lake Cochituate. Boston University MPH intern Kimberly Garcia told the board cyanobacteria in the town beach swimming area peaked at 150,000 cells per milliliter and reached 160,000 just outside the dock on Aug. 7, well above the state's 70,000-cell advisory threshold. State Department of Public Health retests on Sept. 6 and Sept. 13 measured 4,000 and 1,300 cells, allowing the advisory to be lifted. The board unanimously approved a body-art permit for Elegant Brow Studio at 25 Main Street and debated how to spend the remainder of a $242,000-a-year regional public-health grant that now expires June 30, 2024, with members rejecting a proposed health-equity study in favor of "practical" uses. Staff reported 38 boxes of Narcan distributed at an Aug. 28 opioid awareness event.