Infrastructure
New York City (NYC)
Delaware System
Delaware System
IIn 1927, the Board of Water Supply submitted a plan to develop the
Delaware water supply system; a year later the project was approved by
New York City. The construction of the Delaware System was delayed until
March 1937, due to a dispute between the state of New Jersey and New
York over the use of tributaries of the Delaware River. The dispute was
resolved in 1931 when the Supreme Court of the United States upheld the
right of New York City to augment its water supply from the Delaware
River. The Delaware aqueduct draws its waters from four reservoirs: the
Cannonsville, Pepacton, Neversink and Rondout Reservoirs. The
construction of these reservoirs was completed in stages: with the
Rondout Reservoir completed in 1950, the Neversink in 1954, the Pepacton
reservoir in 1955 and the Cannonsville Reservoir in 1964. The Delaware
aqueduct itself was completed in 1944.
The Delaware Aqueduct, which was the last water supply system to be
built in New York State, provides between 50 and 80 percent of New York
City's water. The water is delivered to New York via three pressure
tunnels; these tunnels cross the Hudson River at 600 ft. deep below the
surface. In recent years the Delaware Aqueduct has been plagued with
water loss due to poor infrastructure maintenance. Two major leaks have
been recorded in the Rondout Tunnel, in the Wawarsing and Roseton
crossings. Approximately 35 million gallons of water escape from these
two leaks alone, with additional water loss that is not accounted for.
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has
outlined a comprehensive plan for tackling leaks on the Delaware water
supply system. Out of the two structurally compromised tunnels, the most
challenging tunnel to repair is the one located on the Roseton crossing;
the tunnel located on the Wawarsing crossing can be repaired from within
the tunnel itself. To repair the tunnel on the Roseton Crossing the DEP
must construct a bypass tunnel around the leakage. The bypass tunnel
would begin in Wappinger, Dutchess County and end in Newburgh, Orange
County. The bypass tunnel, made up of two shafts and a tunnel segment,
will be constructed off site to be later attached to the damaged Roseton
Crossing tunnel. Once the construction of new tunnel is completed, the
Delaware Aqueduct must be shut down, in order to continue repairs. The
Roseton bypass tunnel is planned to be completed in 2020. The
construction on the Wawarsing tunnel will begin in 2020, following the
repair of the Roseton bypass tunnel.