March 13, 2014

CONTACT:

deppressoffice@dep.nyc.gov, (718)595-6600

Department of Environmental Protection to Use More Water From Boyd’s Corners Reservoir Over the Next Week

Public access to the reservoir will be temporarily closed to protect public safety

Use of additional water from reservoir will allow progress on key infrastructure project

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced that continuing work on a key infrastructure project will require the use of more water from Boyd’s Corners Reservoir in Putnam County for roughly one week. Warm temperatures and the increased use of water will likely lead to unsafe conditions for ice fishing at Boyd’s Corners Reservoir. As a result, DEP has temporarily closed access to the reservoir. Signs were posted Thursday around the reservoir, and DEP police will provide extra patrols over the weekend to ensure fishermen do not venture onto the ice.

The use of water from Boyd’s Corners Reservoir will be increased from a daily average of 20 million gallons a day (mgd) to 190 mgd for roughly a week. This could cause water levels in the reservoir to drop by roughly 3 feet each day, compromising the strength of ice that built up over winter. Extra water from the reservoir will be used during a weeklong shutdown of the Catskill Aqueduct. The shutdown will allow construction workers to make important progress on a project to connect the Catskill and Delaware aqueducts in Gardiner, N.Y. While the Catskill Aqueduct is shut down, water from Boyd’s Corners Reservoir will help maintain storage levels in West Branch and Kensico reservoirs, which ensure the delivery of high-quality drinking water to New York City and upstate communities. Operations at Boyd’s Corners Reservoir, including fishing access, will return to normal after the Catskill Aqueduct is put back in service.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of water each day to more than 9 million residents, including 8.3 million in New York City, and residents of Ulster, Orange, Putnam, and Westchester counties. This water comes from the Catskill, Delaware, and Croton watersheds that extend more than 125 miles from the City, and the system comprises 19 reservoirs, three controlled lakes, and numerous tunnels and aqueducts. DEP employs nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 scientists, engineers, surveyors, watershed maintainers and others professionals in the upstate watershed. In addition to its $68 million payroll and $157 million in annual taxes paid in upstate counties, DEP has invested more than $1.5 billion in watershed protection programs—including partnership organizations such as the Catskill Watershed Corporation and the Watershed Agricultural Council—that support sustainable farming practices, environmentally sensitive economic development, and local economic opportunity. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program with over $14 billion in investments planned over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nycwater, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/nycwater.