Riverkeeper Watchdog team
Using our reporting form via the button below captures the most comprehensive information. Alternatively, you can reach the Riverkeeper watchdog team directly at
watchdogreport@riverkeeper.org or 800-217-4837 ext. 231.
Emergency situations
If you are reporting an active petroleum or chemical spill or other emergency situation please contact the DEC Spills Hotline at 1-800-457-7362 and/or your local police and emergency responders.
Watchdog reports from community members are an integral part of Riverkeeper’s enforcement efforts. As a small staff, we rely on the public to join us in being the eyes, ears, and voice for the Hudson River. Over the last several decades, we have received reports ranging from superfund sites, to suspected oil spills, to dead sturgeon. Watchdog reports made by the general public are reviewed by Riverkeeper staff, and further investigated when necessary. Please review the “Signs of normal activity” section below before submitting your report.
While harmful algae blooms also appear bright green in color, one natural sign of fall are rafts of duckweed. It is released from the marshes as water chestnut and other vegetation break loose at the end of the season. While other bright green algal blooms can be seen in the warmer months and should be reported, the duckweed is a harmless (and beautiful) mass of hundreds of thousands of the smallest flowering plants known.
Long white streaks of foam can appear with random orientation in the Hudson throughout the year. They are often not predictable and can vary in length and size, but are a function of the "river" being more accurately a tidal estuary. As the tides change to flow in and then out toward the ocean again, a shear is created between waters moving at different speeds, and generating foam. This observation is often confused for pollution, but it never hurts to check!
Often observed from the "Walkway Over the Hudson" bike and walking path in Poughkeepsie, the colder and less turbid waters of the Fall Kill enter the Hudson with striking contrast. While it looks as though something unnatural is entering the river, it's just a function of waters with different characteristics mixing
Spring pollen can blow into the river in large quantities and when it settles on the water, it sometimes forms a "raft" that can look like pollution, but is in fact a natural occurrence.
All Watchdog reports are confidential, and we will not share your name or contact information without your permission. While we prefer that you supply contact information, anonymous reports are accepted as well. You can report anonymously by creating a free email address through Yahoo or Gmail using an alias such as “concerned_citizen” – which will allow us to contact you if we have further questions or need clarification about your report.
Submit in a timely manner
Watchdog reports should be made as soon as possible after an observation of concern is made. Conditions on the river can change quickly and faster reporting increases the likelihood the reported concern will be observable/documentable by Riverkeeper or other agencies who visit the site for additional investigation.
Provide a precise location and photo/video documentation
Watchdog reports should provide as much detail about the location as possible, such as an address, GPS coordinates, or directions to the location, as well as photos of the observation of concern.
Description of the observation of concern should be detailed
Descriptions of the potential threat/observation of concern should include odors, visual characteristics, any identifiable source, waterbody, nearby landmarks, and weather conditions (particularly precipitation). Consider questions such as who, what, when, where, and provide observations rather than conclusions where possible.
Violations outside the Hudson watershed
Our work is focused on the Hudson River watershed. If your report concerns an issue or violation outside of Riverkeeper’s focus please contact the Waterkeeper Alliance at 212-747-0622 or info@waterkeeper.org.
