RiverKeeper Water Quality Report May-June 2013

From our friends and colleagues at RiverKeeper.

For weekly testing results of sites throughout NYC made using the same testing and protocol as RiverKeeper's visit http://www.nycwatertrail.org/water_quality.html

View as webpage Share! Water Quality Report May-June 2013 (1st patrol of 2013) NOTE: EPA guidelines for "acceptable" vs. "unacceptable" fecal contamination levels have changed – they have been downgraded and are now LESS protective of public health. For marine waters (salt and brackish) the old criteria scored any Enterococcus count over 104 per 100ml as "unacceptable" for primary contact, like swimming. The new criteria threshold uses 110 Entero per 100 ml, which is only a slight change - not really significant. In fresh water (all our stations north of Peekskill) the old benchmark was 61 Entero per 100 ml. The new EPA criteria now uses 110  Entero per 100 ml in fresh water as well as marine. This change from 61 to 110 is significant and allows managers of fresh water swimming beaches to remain open with higher levels of fecal contamination – and increased risk of water related illnesses - than before. Highlight: This patrol started south and worked north and followed days of dry weather. I saw swimmers everywhere. There was some rain mid patrol which, as always, triggered Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) in the Capitol District. Look at the data below. You'll see that the plume of sewage contamination from the Capitol District had worked its way down to the area of Coxsackie and Gay's Point State Park (20 – 25 miles) by the time I arrived and sampled (2 days after the rain). We've seen this same scenario before when we've sampled northbound a couple days after rain – the Capital District craps up the northern end of the Estuary. The Hudson Estuary is a 160 mile long beach every summer…don't let anyone tell you otherwise. The entire Estuary needs to be sampled, modeled for predictability and made safe for swimming everywhere. Keep in mind that none of the following shows a "designated" swimming beach. Kids in the Hudson at Dyckman Street, Manhattan. 100 feet south of them is a huge CSO - luckily NOT flowing at the time. NYC does not want to post CSO discharge events in public media like local radio and TV as required by the Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law. God forbid the parents of these children have the information they need to protect them. Shame on New York City – putting its public image over public health. East River Verplanck Point Little Stony Point Poughkeepsie school rowing docks Part, ONLY PART, of the reason the Capitol District water quality was so bad is this dry weather discharge from a CSO in South Troy which we found during an investigation of an unrelated discharge with DEC Environmental Conservation Officers on 6/5/13 . This CSO had been flowing at high volume for a long time. The City of Troy and the Rensselaer County Sewer District were notified, the flow stopped for a while and then started again. This is a big problem. DEC is investigating enforcement options. GOOD. The cities and sewer districts of the Capitol District are under a Consent Order from past violations. Read more on this incident.  "Article: Sewage Spills Bring Fines, Fix Up Plan"  The story was on the front page. And yes, that IS a thick coating of toilet paper. To learn more about Riverkeeper's Water Quality Program, and to view historic sampling data, please visit www.riverkeeper.org/water-quality/hudson. View sampling data sorted historically by individual sampling location. © Riverkeeper 2013
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Bill to amend the Hudson River Park Act Introduced June 18, 2013

As many of you know, Hudson River Park on Manhattan's west side has been struggling to fund its operation.  Attempts have been made to find operators for large spaces designated for development but the future pier 40 and other major properties remain unresolved.  After countless months of work by elected officials, park staff, community groups, coalitions like the pier 40 task force (which includes members of adjacent community boards, etc), a bill was introduced last night to amend the Park Act to address some of the issues that many believe have been standing in the way of progress.

I thought some in the boating community would be interested, not just because we will ultimately have 4 boathouses in the park, but also because this may effect the way future waterfront parks are legislated and financed.

From Madelyn Wils, President of the Hudson River Park Trust:

"Last night the Assembly and Senate each introduced a bill to amend the Hudson River Park enabling legislation in line with many items discussed and introduced by the Task Force over the last year and a half.  Although it doesn't represent all of the issues debated during the many hours and days that we spent together, it provides many significant and important additional rights, plus some language clarifications that will allow us to improve our bottom line and help support the park's viability into the future.  "

The bill can be seen here and a summary of its provisions here.

4th of July Fireworks on the Hudson - CG Regulations

4th of July already?

It appears to be more or less the same as last year, including a special viewing section for human-powered boats.

Click here for the full CGAN (excerpted below) and the chart.

The Captain of the Port New York has established a Special Local Regulation temporarily restricting vessel movement on the waters of the Hudson River in the vicinity of Manhattan, NY and Hudson County, NJ for the annual Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Display (see chartlet below). This Special Local Regulation will be strictly enforced on Thursday, July 4th, 2013 from 6:00 pm until approximately 11:00 pm. All persons and vessels shall comply with the instructions of the Coast Guard Captain of the Port or the designated representative. 

All spectator vessels must be inside the designated viewing areas by 8:00 pm and in position no later than 8:30 pm. Vessels shall be required to hold position (NOT at anchor) and not depart the section until released by the on-scene Coast Guard Commander. This information will be broadcast via VHF-FM CHANNEL 12, 13, 14, and 16. Coast Guard recommends all vessels gather towards the center of the Hudson River. 

All spectator vessels shall maintain a 100 yard distance from any Coast Guard vessel at anchor, at all times.