Total Hudson water investment tops $1 billion – but will it continue?
New York State announced last week it will invest $117 million in clean water projects in our region, catalyzing a total investment of at least $313 million.
With the latest round of investment, more than $1 billion has been invested in just the last three years in improving water quality, shoring up water infrastructure and protecting drinking water sources in the Hudson River Watershed. These investments are made possible by the landmark Water Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2015 and the Clean Water Infrastructure Act of 2017.
| Year | Grant | Total* |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $93,442,843 | $303,020,797 |
| 2018 | $120,165,578 | $452,999,981 |
| 2019 | $115,863,057 | $313,839,433 |
| Total | $329,471,478 | $1,069,860,211 |
*Total investment is an underestimate, as the total costs of projects funded by certain grant programs are not routinely reported.
Riverkeeper and a coalition of organizations are seeking an increase to $1 billion in the state’s annual investment in the Clean Water Infrastructure Act. We don’t want to lose momentum on clearing the tremendous backlog of clean water projects while we make significant and necessary new investments in advanced treatment of drinking water supplies contaminated by PFOA, PFOS and 1,4-dioxane. (The investment in state grants announced to help Long Island communities treat 1,4-dioxane exceeded the total investment in state grants to help all of the Hudson River Watershed invest in drinking and wastewater infrastructure, source water protection and watershed restoration.)
Some highlights of this week’s announcements for places where Riverkeeper works intensively include:
- $17 million to improve water quality by fixing up sewer pipes, pump stations and treatment in communities bordering the Hudson River estuary – including reducing the impact of combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in the Capital District and Kingston
- $14 million to improve water quality in the Mohawk River, the Hudson’s largest tributary; and $10 million to improve water quality in the Upper Hudson River
- $3 million to study and improve the Sparkill Creek, where Riverkeeper has worked with the Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance for more than a decade to bring attention to water quality concerns. Riverkeeper itself won $50,000 from the Hudson River Estuary Program for a water quality monitoring project partnered with the state.
- $3 million to study and improve water quality in the Saw Mill River and the massive sewer system that underlies its watershed
- Drinking water source protection projects benefiting Ossining, Cornwall, Warwick, Hudson, Albany and Bethlehem.