Campaigns & Cases > Restore & Protect NYC Waterways

Restore & Protect NYC Waterways

Newtown Creek NYC waterways

NYC at a Glance

Over the coming years, New York City’s population growth will present both a challenge and an opportunity. The number of people living alongside the city’s waterfront is expected to continue to grow, so too will the risks those residents will face; from climate change, legacy toxins, and ongoing sewage pollution.

Meanwhile, New Yorkers are increasingly taking to the water, whether for fishing, kayaking, biking, or swimming. As more people play in or near our waterways, public concern and awareness grow, leading to increased community advocacy.

Around the city, Riverkeeper has been working to engage and activate communities along diverse waterfronts. We actively support and strengthen the work of organizations like the Guardians of Flushing Bay, Gowanus Canal Conservancy and The Newtown Creek Alliance.

In the 50 years since Riverkeeper’s founding, we’ve been glad to see a sea of change in the way the city approaches clean water. Public access points, triathlons, ferry services, green infrastructure, esplanades, education centers, and restoration work has bridged the pollution-based divide that once separated New Yorkers from their Sixth Borough – the waters around them.

Much work remains, however — and Riverkeeper looks forward to helping steward the next 50 years of change in New York City.

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  • NYC Enforcement

  • Stormwater: Combined Sewers

  • Stormwater: Separate Sewers

  • How’s the Water around New York City?

  • Harlem River

  • Gowanus Canal

  • Maspeth Creek

  • Newtown Creek

  • Flushing Bay & Creek

  • East River

  • Habitat Restoration

  • Partnerships & Community

Tell Gov. Hochul to block invasive species at the Erie and Champlain canals
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