FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 19-036
May 20, 2019
Contact: deppressoffice@dep.nyc.gov, (718) 595-6600

Students from Brooklyn’s P.S. 9 Release Their Classroom Trout Into Watershed Streams

Photos available on DEP’s Flickr Page

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on Thursday joined Trout Unlimited and 4th grade students from Brooklyn’s P.S. 9 to release juvenile trout that the students have raised in their classrooms since October of last year. Nearly 125 fingerlings were released into the Cross River, which is part of New York City’s drinking water system. Trout thrive in clean waters and their presence serves as an important indicator of the health of the City’s watershed streams. The release took place at the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation in Westchester County.

“The Trout in the Classroom program provides a tangible way to educate elementary, middle and high school students about the importance of preserving the rivers, streams and reservoirs that supply the world class drinking water we enjoy every day,” said DEP Commissioner Vincent Sapienza. “Since our partnership with Trout Unlimited began, tens of thousands of students from New York City and the watershed have had a chance to gain an appreciation for our shared water resources and visit the streams that supply their drinking water.”

Since 2002, DEP and Trout Unlimited, a national grassroots non-profit organization whose mission is to conserve, protect, and restore North America's cold-water fisheries and their watersheds, have worked together to educate students in New York City and watershed communities about the importance of protecting our shared water resources through the Trout in the Classroom program. The conservation-oriented environmental education program teaches young New Yorkers, ranging from pre-K to grade 12, about the connections between trout, the New York City water supply system, water quality, and students from both sides of the water tunnel. This year, thousands of students from schools in New York City and the upstate watersheds incubated trout eggs in their classrooms and raised them into juvenile trout, which are also called fingerlings. The 8-month long program culminates with students taking part in a field day, where they release the fingerlings into New York City watershed streams from April through June.