News - Latest Developments

Riverkeeper’s Alex Matthiessen has joined the Land Use: We Shape the Valley Task Force, one of six Task Forces which include some of New York’s most creative thinkers and leaders on issues affecting the Hudson River and Valley, to develop innovative, far-reaching and practicable ideas intended to shape the region’s future. Learn More

Riverkeeper recently issued Save It! Volume II: Strategies for Achieving Smart Growth in the Hudson River Valley. This Smart Growth report is a follow-up to our 2005 sprawl report, Pave It…Or save It?, which analyzed sprawl throughout the East-of-Hudson Watershed. Our new Smart Growth report answers this question. This comprehensive report provides solutions for communities to combat sprawl and adopt smart growth principles. It is designed as a tool box for communities to pick and choose what works best for them. Learn More

United Water New York is forging ahead with plans to construct an expensive and and environmentally destructive desalination plant on the banks of the Hudson River, just downstream of the leaking Indian Point nuclear power plant, to provide drinking water to Rockland County residents. The company recently submitted a proposal to the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) for a 23% rate hike, which would allow future surcharges to ratepayers for costs related to the proposed desalination project. Learn More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tina Posterli, 914-478-4501 x 239, tposterli@riverkeeper.org RIVERKEEPER RELEASES VOLUME 7 OF INDUSTRIAL GAS DRILLING REPORTER White Plains, NY – April 29, 2010 – Riverkeeper released Volume 7 of its Industrial Gas Drilling Reporter today. The Reporter digests impact stories from areas already experiencing industrial gas drilling, provides an update on legislation, links to new reports and studies, and provides information on how the public can get involved. “The number of drinking water contamination incidents, surface spills, air pollution, and other impacts from industrial gas … Learn More

Riverkeeper celebrated Earth Day by being involved with major New York awareness events and programs. At the Earth Day New York celebration in Times Square, Riverkeeper President Alex Matthiessen spoke about clean water issues and shared the stage with Matthew Modine, Mayor Bloomberg, Dennis Hayes and other local, national and international environmental activists, business leaders, government officials and musical guests. Download Alex’s speech Riverkeeper also hosted informational tables in Times Square and at Grand Central’s Earth Day Festival Outdoors, where interested participants were asked to take our Tap Water Challenge. The … Learn More

By Alex Matthiessen Riverkeeper views the DEC decision to segregate the permitting process for the NYC and Syracuse Watersheds as a welcome and significant improvement over the status quo. Previously, DEC made insufficient distinction between the potential risks of drilling in unfiltered drinking water supplies and drilling everywhere else. We believe that this decision effectively takes gas drilling off the table in these two critical watershed areas that provide unfiltered drinking water to over 9 million New York state residents – nearly half the state’s population. While we agree with many … Learn More

Turn out and tune in to support Riverkeeper during this important week! Riverkeeper is celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day with involvement in several major awareness projects that bring attention to the importance of clean water. Mayor Bloomberg and Earth Day New York Events: Riverkeeper President Alex Matthiessen will speak at Earth Day New York’s 40th Anniversary Celebration in Times Square on Thursday, April 22, along with Mayor Bloomberg, Matthew Modine and other notable environmental leaders. The celebration, hosted in partnership with The City of New York, will run from 8 … Learn More

Tarrytown, NY – April 21, 2010 – Riverkeeper has filed two Notices of Intent to Sue for Clean Water Act (CWA) violations against the City of Beacon, New York and Village of Goshen, New York. These actions are part of Riverkeeper’s broader campaign to protect water quality in the Hudson River and its tributaries. Learn More

Indian Point’s owner Entergy Corporation dealt two significant blows by New York State regulators First, on April 2, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) denied a critical water quality certification required before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission can relicense the nuclear plant. The DEC determined that the continued use of Indian Point’s antiquated once-through cooling system violates state standards, because it withdraws and discharges about 2.5 billion gallons of river water a day and causes the death of almost 1 billion aquatic organisms per year due to entrainment, … Learn More