Preserving an important pathway to protect drinking water
February 5, 2025
Dan Shapley
Senior Director of Advocacy, Policy and Planning
Communities in New York have a limited number of options when it comes to proactively protecting their drinking water. One of the most powerful of these is a tool called Watershed Rules and Regulations — a longstanding part of New York State law that gives cities and towns the ability to inspect and safeguard their sources of drinking water. But the state recently diminished this critical tool by abandoning a longstanding commitment to work collaboratively with communities, reducing their power to ensure their water remains clean and safe. Riverkeeper, Earthjustice, and our allies are pushing back to help keep this necessary safety net in place.
Starting in 2017, the the City of Auburn, Town of Owasco, and Cayuga County worked with stakeholders in the Owasco Lake Watershed to develop an update to their Watershed Rules and Regulations in order to address the growing threat of harmful algal blooms (HABs) in Owasco Lake — the primary source of drinking water for nearly 50,000 local residents.
The community’s proposal included modest requirements for farms to protect stream buffers and manage manure in order to reduce the flow of nutrients that lead to HABs in waterways.
But late last year, the New York State Department of Health (NYS DOH) rejected the community’s proposal and then rescinded the decades-old guidance that allows communities to formally propose new Watershed Rules and Regulations for approval by the NYS DOH. This move sets a dangerous precedent, potentially stripping cities and towns — particularly those downstream — of a powerful means to protect their drinking water.
Clean drinking water is a key goal for Riverkeeper and a unifying issue for people across the country. Protecting drinking water at its source, rather than relying entirely on treatment technologies, has far-reaching benefits for public health, water quality, and aquatic life. And we’re not alone in recognizing the benefits of this approach. A recent survey of the American Water Works Association, which represents drinking water utilities, found that source water protection is, for the first time, the industry’s top concern.
Watershed Rules and Regulations were established in state law well over a century ago to grant communities some authority to inspect and regulate drinking water sources that originate outside their boundaries, helping protect downstream cities and towns from upstream pollution or contamination. Watershed Rules and Regulations are also an important tool to protect the many disadvantaged communities that rely on reservoirs, rivers, and other water supplies that originate outside of their municipal boundaries.
Roughly 250 New York State communities have established Watershed Rules and Regulations, including New York City, which used the law to help develop its world-renowned watershed protection program. However, many of these communities’ rules were established decades ago, and are littered with references to concerns from another era, such as the location of privies or the disposal of dead animals. They do not address contemporary threats, like PFAS, harmful algal blooms, road salt or other contaminants.
But they could, and they should.
A forthcoming Riverkeeper analysis of public drinking water data shows rising concentrations of contaminants such as PFAS, road salt, and disinfection byproducts. There is a widespread need to address contaminants like these that aren’t being adequately addressed by other laws, particularly as climate change increasingly affects water quality.
Watershed Rules and Regulations are not a silver bullet. The Clean Water Act, Environmental Conservation Law, and others provide essential protections. Watershed Rules and Regulations should be there to fill the gaps — tailored to the threats faced by each water source.
In communities near Schenectady that rely on the Great Flats Aquifer, for example, rules that were updated in the 1980s place requirements on industrial facilities to notify communities during discharge permittings. Riverkeeper, the City of Newburgh, and our partners have also examined the potential for Watershed Rules and Regulations to address issues related to suburban sprawl and industrial development that impact the city’s Washington Lake drinking water source.
Riverkeeper and Earthjustice are working on a legislative proposal to clarify the law surrounding the Watershed Rules and Regulations, giving communities a clear path to address contemporary threats to drinking water, and to ensure that they have a transparent process for the timely approval of new rules — changes we’ve been calling for alongside our partners for years.
At a time when the Trump administration is working to erode federal clean water protections, the importance of state and regional safeguards like the Watershed Rules and Regulations cannot be understated. Riverkeeper will continue pushing to make certain this critical tool is strengthened, giving cities and towns across New York the power to protect both their drinking water and the health of their communities.
Riverkeeper protects and restores the Hudson River, and safeguards drinking water supplies through community partnerships, science, and law. Our core programs improve water quality, restore habitat for an abundance of life, and address the impact of climate change on our waterways. Founded in 1966 as the Hudson River Fishermen’s Association, Riverkeeper became the model for more than 320 Waterkeeper organizations around the world and helped establish globally-recognized standards for waterway and watershed protection. We continue to work toward the goal of a swimmable, fishable, and drinkable Hudson River for all. Learn more, get updates, and support our work by visiting https://www.riverkeeper.org
Related campaigns
Protecting Hudson River watershed drinking water at the source
Riverkeeper ensures that drinking water sources stay clean and safe through vigilant advocacy and conservation efforts
New York City drinking water
The water supply for 9.5 million New Yorkers depends on keeping our watersheds clean and protected
Related news
August 23, 2017
New Yorkers Must Have a Voice in Protecting Their Water Supply
Mike Dulong
Blog
August 20, 2018
Two years later, Newburgh’s water supply remains just as vulnerable
Blog