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Pictured: Cannonsville Reservoir

NARROWSBURG – The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) will host a public presentation, “Update on Delaware River Basin Reservoir Projects”, on Thursday, August 6, at 6:30 p.m., at the UDC’s Narrowsburg, NY office and by Zoom.

New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Bureau of Water Supply’s Executive Director of Strategic Operations & Research Jennifer Garigliano and Deputy Director of Strategy, Policy & Innovation Adam Bosch will be the presenters.

At the UDC’s request, they will provide updates on two projects.

The first is the status of repairing two significant leaks in the 85-mile-long Delaware Aqueduct detected in Newburgh and Wawarsing during the early 1990s that release approximately 35 million gallons of water per day.

The DEP has been working for nearly two decades on the design and implementation of the complex $2 billion repair project, with construction work starting about 10 years ago. It will require shutting down and draining the aqueduct for approximately eight months to connect the two-mile long bypass tunnel that was installed 600 feet below the Hudson River in 2021.

However, the project has been repeatedly delayed by various factors. It was most recently paused in November 2024 after New York City experienced its longest rainless streak in recorded history. Now a new procurement process is required since the original contract period ended.

The second topic is expanding the capacity of New York City’s Cannonsville Reservoir as one of several potential water-storage options being evaluated in a Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) study with the cooperation of NYC DEP.

Phase I of the DRBC’s 2023-2024 review, “Evaluation of Additional Storage in the Delaware River Basin”, identified 2,500 potential sites which were narrowed to 14 options (12 quarries and two reservoirs) for further study in Phase II.

The idea of expanding Cannonsville Reservoir by raising its spillway circumference was first explored in the 1980s. Cannonsville has a current usable storage capacity of 95.7 billion gallons and 98.6 BG at the spillway crest elevation of 1,150 feet.

The DRBC has contracted with Mott MacDonald for the overall feasibility study to assess engineering, environmental, and operational impacts of each option. Expanding water storage could help the basin to better manage water supply during dry periods.

The UDC’s monthly business meeting to follow will include reports from the Delaware River Basin Commission, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, National Park Service, and UDC Executive Director; discussion of old and new business; and public comments.

All UDC meetings held at 211 Bridge St. in Narrowsburg, NY are open to the public.

To request the Zoom link for remote participation, please contact UDC Administrative Support Stephanie Driscoll at stephanie@upperdelawarecouncil.org or (845) 252-3022.

Check www.upperdelawarecouncil.org or UDC social media pages for meeting updates.