Kamogawa clean?

Hi, I'm wondering how clean the Kamo River in Kyoto is. It comes down from the mountains and I"m sure gets some agricultural runoff, but in general I'm thinking it's not bad... what do you think?

It is and it can sometimes not be. It's beautifully clean but when you get to the more downtown area a lot of young people tend to get drunk next to the river and sometimes throw up in it so just be careful. :) Near Northern Kyoto it's a bit more rural so it's fairly clean. :)

Hmm... What were you planning to do in/with the river?

I haven't seen any signs prohibiting swimming... I know people dangle their feet, but I might be in the mood for a bit more submersion when it reaches 40 degrees!

Before any rule, the people have common sense. Do not mess around with the atmosphere.

Hmmm... but by that logic I would also need to not swim at any public beach after Obon, if I am to follow custom. I would also need to be more reluctant to wear shorts on the street, even when it's 40 degrees outside.
It's a fine line, no one wants to be the ugly gaijin, but come on, a quick cool off in the river? What could be more natural? Dude, have you been in Kyoto in mid-August?

Kamogawa was very polluted not long ago mainly by the runoffs from Yuzen factories, with substances like starch, various dye, ethyl acetate, and ammnonia. Just like any other urban rivers during the hyper-growth era, tons of garbages were floating, and people made the joke of Kamogawa as "Rainbow River" so they say. The water purifying facilities and the local cleaning efforts made the fish and insects come back since then, butI don't think we can see ducks (Kamo) still yet.