NYC Watershed

Drink Tap Water

New Yorkers are fortunate to have some of the finest tap water in the world. Most of this drinking water comes from three upstate reservoir systems called watersheds. The geology of the forests, swamps and farms in the watersheds naturally filter out pollutants, rendering the water pure enough to supply up to 1.5 billion gallons of drinking water to over nine million New Yorkers daily.

A remarkable engineering achievement, New York City’s water delivery system is a 6,000-mile network of pipes, shafts and subterranean aqueducts operating for the most part on gravity alone. It is the single largest manmade financial asset in New York State.

Our Drink Tap Campaign encompasses the enforcement of environmental laws; working with communities and government on proactive programs to achieve long-term protection of the NYC watershed; advocating for stronger watershed protection policies on a local, state and federal level; and encouraging New Yorkers to choose tap water over bottled water.

• NYC's World Class Tap Water

  New York City’s drinking water is world renowned for its purity and taste. It routinely wins taste tests and won first prize at the 2008 New York State Fair, beating out 150 other communities.

  New York City’s drinking water meets all state and federal drinking water standards. It is treated with chlorine to kill bacteria, fluoride to strengthen teeth, orthophosphate to decrease the release of lead from household pipes, and at times sodium hydroxide to lower acidity and reduce corrosiveness. New York State’s Department of Environmental Protection continually monitors the water in the reservoirs and the distribution system.

  Riverkeeper played a critical role in the first broad-based watershed legislation in 1997, and continues to be one of the primary watchdogs enforcing compliance in the city’s three major watershed regions.

• Learn About Your WaterChecking Your Water Quality

  We all have the right to know what’s in our drinking water. The Safe Drinking Water Act, passed in 1976, authorized the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set drinking water standards for all public water systems. Water utilities are required to monitor and treat drinking water to meet these federal standards and notify the public about any detected regulated contaminant or other water quality violation.

  The centerpiece of these right-to-know provisions is the annual water quality report intended to help consumers make informed choices about their drinking water.
  Learn More

• Take Back the Tap New York

  Riverkeeper has joined forces with Food & Water Watch on the Take Back the Tap New York campaign.

  • This joint campaign aims to:

  • Promotes NYC’s premier tap water over bottled water
  • Increases awareness of the NYC Watershed – a critical resource for New York
  • Advocates for increased funding for water infrastructure maintenance
  • Raises awareness of the social, economic, and environmental problems associated with bottled water
  • Increase access to municiple water supplies through water fountains and filling stations in public and private settings
  • Convince NYC’s large institutions to dramatically reduce their bottled water consumption through increased availability of tap water
  • Secure passage and funding of the Clean Water National Trust Fund
  • Regulate disposal of pharmaceuticals to keep them out of our waterways
  • Stop the trend towards water privatization

  Learn More about our campaign with Food and Water Watch.