"The Charles River Watershed Association shows what good non-profits can do with good science," Abele said.

To meet the goal of a swimmable, fishable Charles River, activists will now focus their efforts on educating the community about the importance of the health of the river and will also continue their campaign to encourage individual responsibility.

"The last part of this all will come from homeowners, individuals, dog owners who will change their behavior to reduce waste," according to Ira Leighton, the acting regional administrator of EPA New England.

Community education is another facet of the clean up efforts. The Watershed Institute, run by Max Kennedy, takes inner-city youth to the river. Through observation, the students learn the river's environmental value and will encourage people around them to respect the river, Kennedy said.

Environmentalists will continue to focus on reducing storm water runoff into the river, which carries with it pollutants from gasoline to laundry detergent.

"One of the reasons we've had no change in the river's grade was because this was a very wet year," Zimmerman said.

M.I.T plans to help the effort by sponsoring a contest for the best storm-water drain.

Activists are encouraged by the efforts targeted to make the Charles safe for swimming.