Water Quality update: 5 ways to take action for clean water, plus the latest data

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Here are five important ways to take action to promote clean water today:

1. Ask Governor Cuomo to sign the streams bill!
A two-year advocacy campaign reached a milestone recently when the New York Legislature passed new protections for 41,000 miles of streams in New York State, including more than 9,000 in the Hudson River Watershed. These new state protections are essential, given the assault on clean water protections by the Trump administration.
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2. Protect New York City waters from a Clean Water Act rollback
Thousands of people enjoy swimming and other recreation in the Hudson River and other New York City waters, which is one reason it’s so important to stop the overflow of billions of gallons of raw sewage every time it rains. And yet, New York State is seeking to change the rules, arguing New York City waters don’t have to be clean enough to meet safe swimming standards. Don’t let them get away with it.
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3. Protect our waters from coal tar pavement sealants
Pavement sealers made from coal tar are a ubiquitous source of toxic contamination to our waters, and alternatives are available. At the same time New York State and utilities are spending tens of millions of dollars to remove old coal tar dumped in the Hudson River a century ago, we’re still allowing polluted coal tar runoff to pollute our waters. The New York State Senate has passed a ban on these sealants. Contact your Assembly member and urge them to pass the ban on coal tar sealants (A.1304A/S.6308A).

4. Jumpstart the stalled PCBs investigation in the Hudson River
General Electric dumped PCBs for three decades, polluting 200 miles of the Hudson River. Several decades later, and the EPA has yet to order an investigation of PCB contamination in the 150-mile long tidal portion of the Hudson River south of Troy. Tell the EPA we’ve waited long enough.
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5. Sign up to clean your river
The 9th annual Riverkeeper Sweep is Saturday, October 17. Riverkeeper and its partners have organized volunteer cleanups at more than 50 shoreline sites along the Hudson River and its tributaries.
Register today >

The latest data
Click any link to find the latest data, or the “report” link for the most recent summary based on longterm monitoring. Concentrations of bacteria indicate fecal contamination, an indicator of water quality for safe recreation. Remember that the data show a snapshot in time, and don’t indicate water quality today.