DEP Watch

Riverkeeper’s Watershed Program also serves as a government agency watchdog. Specifically, we continually monitor the operations of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the agency tasked with overseeing the operation and maintenance of New York City’s water supply.

In 1997, New York State, New York City, United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), upstate communities and environmental organizations, including Riverkeeper, joined together to sign an agreement to protect the unfiltered drinking water supply that more than nine million residents of New York City and upstate communities use daily.

This agreement, the historic 1997 Watershed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), bringing with it open space conservation and stronger land use controls, established a working partnership and framework for watershed protection that is both cost effective and environmentally protective. We believe that, if implemented effectively, this agreement is the best means to preserve the water supply, the upstate economy, and the Catskills environment.

With the DEP Report Card, and other reports, Riverkeeper, in partnership with other organizations, evaluates the progress of DEP’s efforts in safeguarding the drinking water supply for millions of New Yorkers and working with watershed communities.

  • Riverkeeper's DEP Reports

  • Delaware Aqueduct Leak

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