News - Latest Developments

Riverkeeper supports the NY State Assembly Bill 8914 which calls for reducing the use of products that contain phosphorus in New York State. Phosphorus, which is currently found in some lawn fertilizers and household cleaning products, is a hazardous chemical when it makes its way into our waterways through lawn run-off and dumping into our sewers. Read letter to NYS Assemblyman Sweeney in support of a statewide Phosphorus bill.

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We have redesigned our site to allow for easier access to our Campaigns and Cases, more information on the resources we protect, and increased opportunities for our supporters to stay informed and get involved. New features you can explore today include – the NYC Watershed section where you can learn all about the engineering feat that supplies pristine drinking water to 9 million New Yorkers; our new Take Action section where you’ll learn how to minimize your impact on the Hudson River and our watershed; A Hudson River Journey where […]

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The Gowanus Canal, one of the most heavily contaminated water bodies in the nation, is a candidate for the Federal Superfund National Priorities List (NPL). If it makes the list, then the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can begin studying the extent of its contamination and draft plans for a thorough and coordinated cleanup. Although EPA is facing pressure from developers and New York City to not add the canal to the Superfund list, it is accepting public comments on the nomination. Riverkeeper urges you to ask your elected officials to […]

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On May 19, Riverkeeper served the Accord Speedway with a notice of its intent to sue for violating the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) by polluting a nearby stream and connected wetlands with turbid water. Riverkeeper believes the water contains pesticides, anti-freeze, oil, grease and other petroleum products.

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On Friday, May 15, the long delayed clean-up of the Hudson River PCBs begin. Now Riverkeeper will keep a watchful eye on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make sure the entire clean-up occurs and that it is thorough. The first phase of the two-phase cleanup will last about six months and focus on the removal of approximately 265,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment – only 10% of the total amount of contaminated sediment originally slated for removal. A legal agreement between GE and EPA allows GE to determine […]

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On April 14, Riverkeeper submitted comments to the Army Corps of Engineers, urging the Corps to deny a federal permit application to fill wetlands in the proposed Kent Manor development. The developer plans to fill wetlands on the property and wants to mitigate this impact by constructing wetlands adjacent to roads and other impervious surfaces without suitable buffer zones. Riverkeeper commented that filling existing wetlands and constructing wetlands near roads, without appropriate buffers, increases the likelihood that pollutants such as phosphorus will discharge into the Croton Falls Reservoir.

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On April 9, Riverkeeper filed comments opposing a dredging project by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which would place approximately 150,000 cubic yards of highly toxic soil on Houghtaling Island in New Baltimore. New York has identified Houghtaling Island, one of the largest undisturbed parcels of land in the Hudson River estuary, as a critical habitat. Nevertheless, the Army Corps has used it for decades as a dump for dredged soil containing varying levels of PCBs, heavy metals, and other contaminants.

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On April 1, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Clean Water Act provision governing cooling water intake structures does not forbid cost-benefit analysis when determining “best technology available” for power plants. The Court also ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may decide to not engage in such analysis. That’s good news for Riverkeeper, who is now looking to the Obama administration and EPA to revise the rule it wrote in February 2004 and to write new regulations favoring the preservation of fish and other aquatic life.

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Riverkeeper is currently working with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to address concerns about proposed stream bank restoration projects in the Kensico Reservoir basin. Although the projects are designed to comply with water quality regulations and reduce turbidity in the Kensico, local residents have expressed concerns about the size and number of trees that will be cleared in order to implement the proposed projects. In April, Riverkeeper visited the sites with DEP officials. We will continue to investigate and monitor the situation in an effort to […]

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