Does mydrinking watercontainFluoride?

Yes, all New YorkCity tap watercontains fluoride.In accordancewith Article141.08 of the NewYork City HealthCode, DEP, as theNew York Citywater supplier,adds a fluoridecompound whichprovides our watersupply with a con-centration ofapproximately 1.0part per million(ppm) fluoride.Fluoridation com-menced in 1964.

WaterTrunk Main

WaterTunnel

Watershed

WaterDistribution

Main

Pump

waterstorage tank

• Continuous monitoring of water quality flowing into tunnels and aqueducts

• Water treatment and disinfection

Water Testing andTreatment Facilities

GravityFed

WaterAqueduct

Distribution Reservoir(Hillview/Jerome Park)

Source Reservoir(Kensico/New Croton)

Dividingwall

Dam

Water Sampling Station

• Nearly 1000 sampling stations throughout New York City

• Over 35,000 samples are collected and tested annually

New York City’s

Water Treatment

All surface water and groundwaterentering New York City’s distributionsystem is treated with chlorine, fluo-ride, orthophosphate, and, in somecases, sodium hydroxide. New YorkCity uses chlorine to meet the NewYork State Sanitary Code and federalSafe Drinking Water Act disinfectionrequirements. Fluoride, at a concen-tration of one part per million, is addedto help prevent tooth decay and hasbeen added since 1964 in accordancewith the New York City Health Code.Orthophosphate is added to create aprotective film on pipes that reducesthe release of metals, such as lead,from household plumbing. Sodiumhydroxide is added to Catskill/Delawarewater to raise the pH and reduce corro-sivity.

A sequestering phosphate is applied atseveral wells to prevent the precipita-tion of naturally occurring minerals,

DEP’s Monitoring for Pathogens

In 1992, the City added a pathogenmonitoring component to its compre-hensive watershed monitoring pro-gram. Since then, samples have beencollected weekly from the effluents ofKensico and New Croton Reservoirs,before water is first chlorinated in theCatskill/Delaware and Croton Systems,respectively. In May 1999, DEP imple-mented a more sensitive analyticalmethod which improved theDepartment’s ability to detect bothGiardia cysts and Cryptosporidiumoocysts. Current test methods, howev-er, are limited in that they do not allowus to determine if organisms identifiedare dead or if they are capable of caus-ing disease.

In 2000, as part of the routine sam-pling program, 105 samples of KensicoReservoir effluent and 52 samples ofNew Croton Reservoir effluent werecollected and analyzed for Giardiacysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts. Ofthe 105 Kensico Reservoir samples, 67samples were presumed positive forGiardia and 10 samples were con-firmed positive. Twelve samples werepresumed positive for Cryptosporidiumat Kensico with no samples confirmedpositive. The New Croton Reservoirsamples produced 24 presumed posi-tive Giardia samples with two samplesconfirmed positive; and, of eight pre-sumed positive Cryptosporidium sam-ples, no samples confirmed positive.Weekly updates of DEP’s Giardia andCryptosporidium data from 1992 to thepresent can be viewed on our Web sitewww.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/pathogen.html.

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mostly iron and manganese, in the dis-tribution mains and customers’ house-hold piping. Air stripper facilities oper-ate at several wells to remove volatileorganic chemicals.

Ensuring a Safe and

Sufficient Supply of Water

Watershed Programs

During 2000, New York City continuedimplementation of the watershed pro-tection and partnership programs setforth in the January 1997 WatershedMemorandum of Agreement (MOA).These efforts focused on three key pro-grams: the acquisition of watershedlands; the enforcement of strengthenedWatershed Regulations; and the expan-sion of partnership programs that tar-get specific sources of pollution in thewatershed. In addition, DEP continuedwork on a number of water qualitystudies, and continued implementingthe upgrades of non-City-owned waste-water treatment plants (WWTPs).

Land AcquisitionIn 2000, DEP met the goals for procur-ing watershed lands set forth in the1997 Filtration AvoidanceDetermination (FAD) and the MOA.Specifically, DEP solicited 52,846 acresof watershed lands in designated priori-ty areas. As of December 2000, DEPhad 26,970 acres either acquired orunder purchase contract for a cost of$76.5 million.

Watershed RegulationsOn May 1, 1997, enhanced WatershedRegulations became effective, replacingregulations that had been in placesince 1953. The Regulations are vitalto water supply protection and providea higher level of defense against mod-ern-day threats to water quality. Byvigorously enforcing the newRegulations, DEP is ensuring that theCity’s source waters are protected.The steps taken to ensure a high quali-ty water supply include: aggressive

policing and inspection of the water-sheds; greatly increased water qualitymonitoring; systematic inspections ofwastewater treatment plants; investiga-tions of other potentially pollutingactivities; and legal actions against pol-luters. Furthermore, in 2000, DEP staffreviewed more than 1,719 applicationsfor new or remediated septic systems,125 stormwater pollution preventionplans, and more than 200 proposals forother projects that included one ormore regulated activities.

Partnership ProgramsWest of the Hudson River, many of thepartnership programs are being admin-istered by the Catskill WatershedCorporation (CWC), a non-profit cor-poration formed solely for that pur-pose. Together, CWC and DEP contin-ued to implement programs that reme-diated 193 failing septic systems, com-pleted construction of 29 winter roadde-icing materials storage facilities, andidentified a second group of best man-agement practices to address existingstormwater runoff.

The Watershed Agricultural Program,funded by DEP and implemented bythe Watershed Agricultural Council hasbecome a national model. More than90% of watershed farms have joined theprogram, which develops BestManagement Practices to reduce agri-cultural pollution and enhance the eco-nomic viability of participating farms.

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The aerators inmy home areclogging withsmall pieces ofa whitish mate-rial. What iscausing this tooccur? This is a frequent com-plaint from consumers.The problem may beaccompanied by a sig-nificant drop in waterpressure at the affect-ed faucet in additionto a decrease in yourhot water supply. Theculprit is the hot waterheater’s ‘dip-tube’.This is a long internaltube which deliverscold water to the bot-tom of the hot waterheater tank. Thetube, which is com-posed of polypropy-lene, may disintegrate.The problem affectsapproximately 16 mil-lion water heatersmanufactured between1993 and 1996.

The Program includes a watershedforestry component and theConservation Reserve EnhancementProgram (CREP). Under CREP, the USDepartment of Agriculture paysenhanced annual rental rates and otherincentives to agricultural landowners totake environmentally sensitive landsout of production. The City and USDAeach pay half the cost of treating thoselands with conservation practices. Todate, more than fifty landowners haveenrolled over 600 acres of riparianbuffer lands into CREP.

Wastewater Treatment Plant UpgradesThe City continues to advance the pro-gram to upgrade all of the 102 non-City-owned wastewater treatmentplants (WWTP) in the watershed. Allfacilities have signed agreements toparticipate in the upgrade program andhave hired engineers to completeupgrade designs. Construction isexpected to begin on the first of theseupgrades in 2001. The City hadupgraded its own watershed WWTPs inthe late 1990s.

Upstate Capital ImprovementsThe City continued to implement amulti-year program to upgrade andimprove its upstate water supply facili-ties, including gatehouses, aqueducts,water testing laboratories, and otherfacilities which are important to ensur-ing a safe and reliable supply of drink-ing water. An ongoing dam reconstruc-tion program has also been in effect forrehabilitation of dams. In 2000, workwas done on facilities at five reservoirsand three controlled lakes. In addition,

work is expected to begin on five morereservoirs in 2001. Highlights of thisyear’s work include the replacement ofroller and sluice gates as well as thechlorination systems in Shaft 18 andthe Catskill Screen Chamber, andrepairs to the gate valve in Shaft 6 ofthe Delaware Aqueduct completed inthe first week of December.

The Distribution System

City Water Tunnel No. 3The Third Water Tunnel, begun in1970, is being built in stages. The firststage of Tunnel No. 3, which becameoperational in July 1998, has alreadyhelped to improve the reliability of theCity’s drinking water distribution sys-tem. Stage 2 of Tunnel No. 3 includestwo sections, and is scheduled to befinished in 2008. The first section ofStage 2, which is in Brooklyn andQueens, is currently under construc-tion and upon completion will improveservice to Staten Island, Brooklyn andQueens. This will be followed by theconstruction of the Manhattan sectionof Stage 2.

When completed, Tunnel No. 3 willcreate a more flexible means of supply-ing drinking water to the entire Cityand will provide delivery alternatives inthe event of disruption in any of theolder tunnels. It will also permit NewYork City to drain, examine and reha-bilitate City Tunnels No. 1 and 2.

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At times, mydrinking wateroften looks"milky" whenfirst takenfrom a faucet,but then clearsup. Why?

Air becomestrapped in thewater as it makesits long trip fromthe upstate reser-voirs to the City.As a result,microbubbles ofair can sometimescause water toappear cloudy ormilky. This condi-tion is not a publichealth concern.The cloudiness istemporary andclears quickly afterthe water is drawnfrom the tap andthe excess air isreleased.

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Cats

kill

Aqu

edu

ct

Delaw

are

Aqu

edu

ct

Del

awar

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qued

uct

Catskill Aqueduct

KensicoReservoir

CONNECTICUT

NEW YO

RK

NEW YORKNEW JERSEY

WESTCHESTERCOUNTY

NASSAUCOUNTY

BROOKLYN

QUEENS

BRONX

STATENISLAND

HillviewReservoir

Jerome ParkReservoir

Silver LakePark

(undergroundstorage tanks)

Richmond Tunnel

City Tunnel 3Stage 1

(Completed)

City Tunnel 3Stage 2

Manhattan Section(Funded)

City Tunnel 3Stage 4

(Proposed)

City Tunnel 3Stage 2

Queens/Brooklyn Section(under construction)

City Tunnel 3Stage 3

(Proposed)

Long Island Sound

East River

Atlantic Ocean

LowerNew York

Bay

Hu

dso

n

R

iver

NEW YORK CITYWATER TUNNELS

&DISTRIBUTION AREAS

Cro

ton

Aq

ued

uct

NY City Line

City T

unnel 2

Catskill / Delaware water distribution areaCroton water distribution areaSupplemented with Croton water frequentlyGroundwater distribution area

Map Not to Scale

City

Tunn

el1

MA

NH

ATT

AN

Van CortlandtValve Chamber

This map of the City indicates the general areas where water can be supplied by the Croton andGroundwater Systems when they are on line. It is possible to distribute Catskill/Delaware waterthrough both the Croton and Groundwater Systems.

Sometimes mywater is arusty browncolor. Whatcauses this?Brown water is com-monly associated withplumbing corrosionproblems inside build-ings and from rustinghot water heaters. Ifyou have an ongoingproblem with brownwater, it is probablydue to rusty pipes. Itis recommended thatyou run your coldwater for 2 - 3 min-utes if it has not beenused for an extendedperiod of time. Thiswill flush the line.You can avoid wastingwater by catchingyour "flush" water in acontainer and using itto water plants or forother purposes. Inaddition, brown watercan result from streetconstruction or watermain work being donein the area. Any dis-turbance to the main,including the openingof a fire hydrant, cancause pipe sedimentto shift, resulting inbrown water. The set-tling time of the mainwill vary, dependingon the size of thewater main.

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OperationsIn our ongoing efforts to maintain theappropriate volume and high quality ofwater in the distribution system, thereis some rotation in the water sourcesused by DEP. In the GroundwaterSystem, wells are routinely removedand returned to service for mainte-nance or due to changes in demand.After Hurricane Floyd poured torrentialrains on the watershed, the entireCroton System was shut down fromSeptember 17, 1999, through April 20,2000, due to elevated levels of color(which is an aesthetic problem, not apublic health concern) and to permitcontract work in the Croton Aqueduct.On April 20, 2000, the Croton Systemwas placed back in limited servicewhen the Mosholu Pumping Stationwas activated, which pumped about 35million gallons per day (MGD) ofCroton water into Tunnel #1 of theCatskill/Delaware Supply through theend of the year. For the month of Mayand the first half of June the maximumpumped flow was 52.5 MGD. In addi-tion about 14 MGD was distributed inthe East Bronx from April 24 to June13, 2000.

Croton Filtration PlantThe City is planning to build a treat-ment facility to filter water from theCroton System.

The federal Surface Water TreatmentRule (SWTR) requires that all watersupplies be filtered by June 29, 1993,unless the system meets special crite-ria to receive a waiver. Even thoughCroton water quality is high, it experi-ences seasonal color problems and willbe subjected to stricter standards fordisinfection by-products in the nearfuture. In November 1998, a ConsentDecree, committing the City to design,construct, and operate a Croton filtra-tion facility, was signed by the City, theUnited States and the State of NewYork. The facility is expected toreduce color levels in the Croton watersupply and ensure compliance withstricter drinking water standards to beimposed in the future.

Until DEP begins to filter Croton water,we are required to make the followingstatement: Inadequately treated watermay contain disease-causing organ-isms. These organisms include bacte-ria, viruses, and parasites, which cancause symptoms such as nausea,cramps, diarrhea, and associatedheadaches.

Should I buybottled water? You do not need tobuy bottled waterfor health reasonsin New York Citysince our watermeets all federaland State health-based drinkingwater standards.Also, bottled watercosts up to 1,000times more thanthe City's drinkingwater.