Riverkeeper's Annual Water Quality Report Finds Goal of Swimmable Hudson has not been Attained — Increased Regulations, Infrastructure Investment, Water Testing and Pollution Enforcement Needed
July 17, 2014
Riverkeeper Team
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tina Posterli, 516-526-9371, tposterli@riverkeeper.org
23% of Water Samples and 61% of Sample Sites Fail to Meet EPA Safe Swimming Guidelines
OSSINING, NY – July 17, 2014 – Riverkeeper today released “How’s the Water? 2014” its third report summarizing the state of the Hudson River for swimming. The report shows that many locations in the Hudson River are failing to meet federally recommended guidelines for safe swimming, and will continue to do so without new regulations, increased investments in infrastructure, upgrades to state water quality standards and enforcement of pollution laws.
"How's the Water? 2014" summarizes the results of monthly sampling from 2008-2013 for Enterococcus, bacteria that indicate sewage and other fecal contamination. Exposure to pathogens in recreational waters fouled by fecal contamination can cause a variety of illnesses, some severe and life threatening, including vomiting and diarrhea. Riverkeeper samples 74 locations between New York Harbor and Waterford monthly from May to October in collaboration with scientists at CUNY Queens College and Columbia University's Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, and dozens more locations in Hudson River tributaries in partnership with citizen scientists. The samples are processed in a lab aboard the Riverkeeper patrol boat. Key findings include:
- 23% of Riverkeeper's samples failed safe-swimming guidelines, and would have prompted the periodic closing of these locations to swimming if managed according to EPA's recommendations.
- 61% of Riverkeeper's 74 sampling locations in the Hudson River Estuary fail EPA criteria for recreational water. Regulators should improve pollution controls to reduce contamination from human, agricultural, livestock and other sources.
- Rainfall triggers a threefold increase in failure rate, from 12% of samples taken in dry weather to 34% after rainfall. One key to reducing this failure rate is to invest in wastewater infrastructure upgrades.
- Certain tributaries are often more contaminated than the river itself, and act as pollution sources. The failure rate at our sample sites in the tidal portion of tributaries was 34%, compared to 18% at sites in the mid-channel of the river. The failure rate was higher still in the above-tidal portions of six tributaries sampled by citizen scientists.
- Testing by government agencies is currently inadequate to protect public health. Testing must be frequent and widespread to match the public’s use of the water, and adhere to EPA recommendations. Predictive models should be developed for recreational waters.
Paul Gallay, President and Hudson Riverkeeper, said: "The Hudson River and its tributaries are the public's beach—and the public deserves clean water. That right is enshrined in the Clean Water Act, and it's our job to stop the pollution that too often makes the water unsafe for swimming."
Thousands participate in swimming events, and countless more swim, tube, water-ski and take part in other recreational activity throughout the 150-mile long estuary, and in its tributaries.
Capt. John Lipscomb, Director of Riverkeeper’s Water Quality Program, stated: "The good news is that bacterial counts of 77% of Riverkeeper's samples in the Hudson River Estuary were within EPA guidelines for safe swimming. The public is using the historic data we provide for guidance on the water quality at locations where they recreate and to learn how those sites vary over time and how often rainfall degrades water quality at those locations. We are confident that the public, when informed of water quality problems, will demand and support waste water infrastructure investment.”
The findings in the report highlight the critical need to invest in wastewater infrastructure, at a time when the Cuomo administration is trying to raid $511 million in Environmental Facilities Corporation funding for the demolition of the old Tappan Zee Bridge, dredging to support construction of a new bridge, and other TZB related projects. These uses are inconsistent with the fund's purpose, to serve as the primary source of low-interest loans for communities to invest in clean water infrastructure.
More than $3 billion has been committed to improvements in wastewater infrastructure in recent years in New York City, the Capital District and elsewhere in the Hudson River Estuary and Watershed. But the funding gap across New York State for water and wastewater infrastructure has been estimated at $36 billion. Riverkeeper's data also suggest that upgrades to aging sewer systems are only part of the solution: better design, maintenance and regulation of septic systems and control of agricultural runoff will be key to improve water quality in some areas.
Riverkeeper is calling for several actions to achieve a swimmable Hudson River, including:
- Federal, state and local funding must be preserved and expanded for wastewater infrastructure, pollution enforcement and water quality monitoring. The $57 billion shortfall in spending on infrastructure, the disproportionate and severe cuts to Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) staffing over the past 20 years, and recent cuts to state programs for pathogen monitoring are putting the public at greater risk from exposure to contaminants in recreational water.
- New York State must implement new, more protective standards for recreational water quality that adhere to recommendations in the EPA's 2012 Recreational Water Criteria. New York's standards are nearly 30 years old, and these standards are key to protecting public health and reducing pollution. They guide testing and management of swimming areas by county health departments, and they are used by the state DEC to assess water quality and identify waters in need of greater pollution controls. The EPA's recommended water quality guidelines are imperfect (the acceptable rate of illness from contact with water is set at 3.2% of recreational users) but they would represent a significant improvement over New York's current standards. Upgraded standards would prompt increased testing throughout the estuary and its tributaries, better protection for children and other vulnerable populations, increased public notification when swimming areas are contaminated through use of a “Beach Action Value,” and increased enforcement of pollution laws to reduce contamination. New York is currently drafting new standards based on the new EPA criteria so the opportunity to do much better is now.
- New York State must fully implement the Sewage Pollution Right to Know Act. Implementation must follow the intent of the law to provide clear and timely information to the public about sewage releases, including combined sewer overflows (CSOs). Public notification is an important step in both protecting the public and building public support for needed infrastructure investments.
The report and all published data is available at https://www.riverkeeper.org/water-quality
We encourage the public to explore the historical data as one way to make informed choices about where and when to enter the water. But the public should be aware that a water quality monitoring study such as this cannot directly answer many questions definitively about whether it is safe to swim at any given location and time. This is one reason we are calling for more testing and for the development of predictive models.
REGIONAL NOTES
New York City
Public investments to curtail combined sewer overflows (CSO) during rain are well targeted to the main problem identified by Riverkeeper's testing in New York City waters. The city is implementing a $2.4 billion CSO Long Term Control Plan and the $500 million Gowanus Canal Superfund cleanup calls for controlling sewage discharges in addition to toxic waste cleanup. Riverkeeper's data at 15 sampling locations in the Hudson, Harlem and East Rivers, the Newtown Creek and Gowanus Canal show that the failure rate is 10% in dry weather, but 35% after rain.
The public is currently being asked to comment on aspects of the Long Term Control Plan, and Riverkeeper urges residents of New York City and its suburbs to speak out about their desire to use waters that receive CSO discharges—including the Hutchinson River, Westchester Creek and Flushing Creek—for recreation. New Jersey should also pass a Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law comparable to New York's; a bill was passed by the legislature but vetoed by New Jersey Governor Christopher Christie in 2013.
Westchester and Rockland counties
Riverkeeper's data suggests additional pollution controls are needed in several areas, notably tributaries like the Pocantico River, Sparkill Creek and Saw Mill River, and waterfronts in Tarrytown and Piermont. Recent infrastructure investments, such as the $9.9 million upgrade to the Tarrytown pump station and a significant investment in Orangetown, are positive steps.
Rockland County tests several shoreline locations for pathogens, despite having no official swimming beaches. However, this information is not routinely made public. Westchester County tests Croton Point Beach and at the Philipse manor Swim Club. Both counties could exercise leadership on this issue—Rockland County by publishing its data, and Westchester by expanding testing to other locations on the Hudson River and its tributaries used for recreation, and by creating a predictive model for Croton Point Beach and the swim club to guide beach closure decisions.
New York should implement EPA guidelines, including weekly testing at public access points, to protect public health at swimming areas like these.
Orange and Putnam counties
No government agency tests the water for pathogens here, despite the presence of popular swimming areas, including Little Stony Point and Plum Point.
New York should implement EPA guidelines, including weekly testing at public access points, to protect public health at swimming areas like these.
In Newburgh, 58% of samples taken at the Newburgh boat launch failed to meet EPA guidelines for safe swimming, and the site failed to meet EPA criteria for recreational waters. There is a clear need to investigate and control pollution here to protect public health. The Wallkill River in Orange and Ulster counties also requires additional pollution investigation and control to improve water quality.
Dutchess and Ulster counties
Water quality in Beacon Harbor near the River Pool met EPA criteria for recreation, but still 16% of Riverkeeper’s water samples should have prompted temporary advisories to swimmers. Dutchess County samples water quality here weekly, the minimum recommended by the EPA, but does not routinely make testing results public. Dutchess County can exercise leadership by implementing the EPA’s recommendations for use of a Beach Action Value at Beacon River Pool.
Ulster County tests three times annually at two Hudson River Beaches – Kingston Point and Ulster Landing – and at four beaches on its tributaries. Testing should be increased to weekly, and predictive models should be developed to guide protective closures at these beaches.
New York should implement EPA guidelines, including weekly testing at public access points, to protect public health at swimming areas like these.
No pathogen testing is done outside of designated beaches in Dutchess or Ulster Counties. Yet, people frequently come into contact with the water at places such as Poughkeepsie, Norrie Point and Tivoli Bays on the Hudson River, and on the Rondout and Esopus Creeks and the Wallkill River.
Riverkeeper's data suggest that additional pollution controls are needed on the Wallkill River, Rondout Creek and Esopus Creek, and at Norrie Point.
Columbia-Greene
No government agency tests Hudson River waters for pathogens in Columbia or Greene counties, despite there being many areas where people enter the water.
New York should implement EPA guidelines, including weekly testing at public access points, to protect public health at swimming areas like these.
Riverkeeper's data suggest that additional pollution controls are needed to improve water quality at several locations, including the Catskill Creek, waterfronts in Hudson, Athens and Coxsackie, and at Gay's Point.
Capital District
No government agency tests Hudson River waters for pathogens in the Capital District although testing is planned as part of the Capital District Long Term Response Plan.
New York should implement EPA guidelines, including weekly testing at public access points, to protect public health at swimming areas like these. Sampling, predictive modeling and advisories should begin immediately – the public is using the water now.
Riverkeeper's data suggest that additional pollution controls are needed to improve water quality throughout the region, particularly after rain, when the failure rate jumps to 61% from 20% in dry weather.
Riverkeeper observes people using these waters for "primary contact recreation" – swimming, tubing, water-skiing, child water play and other activities that might result in the ingestion of water. Yet, the state does not manage these waters to be protective of swimming.
The CSO Long Term Control Plan for the Capital District has set the goal of achieving water quality safe for swimming, and investments in the 15-year plan are just beginning.
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