September 21, 2016

Contact:

deppressoffice@dep.nyc.gov, (845) 334-7868

Department of Environmental Protection to Perform Drainage Analysis Work at West Branch Auxiliary Dam

October work will require alternating one-way traffic on Route 6 in Town of Carmel

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced that work on the auxiliary dam at West Branch Reservoir in the Town of Carmel will require traffic on Route 6 to be limited to one lane for approximately eight days in October. Temporary signs will be posted on either side of the dam next week to alert local motorists. The town, local school, police and fire departments have also been informed of the temporary lane closures. The daily lane closures, which will last from 9 a.m. till 3 p.m., are expected to begin Oct. 10.

The traffic change will allow DEP to safely examine drainage at the auxiliary dam, located at the south end of the reservoir near Drewville Road, and some minor erosion that has occurred since the state Department of Transportation widened that section of the highway a number of years ago. DEP will drill several borings at the dam to confirm the type of soils at the site, and the exact location of bedrock. This information will help engineers design a more effective and permanent drainage system at the dam, and a solution to the minor erosion that has already occurred.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of high quality water each day to more than 9.5 million New Yorkers. This includes more than 70 upstate communities and institutions in Ulster, Orange, Putnam and Westchester counties who consume an average of 110 million total gallons of drinking water daily from New York City’s water supply system. 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 has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 scientists, engineers, surveyors, watershed maintainers and other professionals in the upstate watershed. In addition to its $70 million payroll and $157 million in annual taxes paid in upstate counties, DEP has invested more than $1.7 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 nearly $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 nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.