The Catskill Aqueduct delivers water from the Catskill Mountains to NYC. The project took over 20 years to complete and cost nearly 2.4 billion dollars.
City Water
New York City Water Quality Analysis
9 min read
- 01 | Who Regulates New York City’s Water Supply?
- 02 | The Department of Environmental Protection’s Annual NYC Water Quality Report
- 03 | The Environmental Working Group’s Water Quality Report
- 04 | Where Does NYC Get Its Water?
- 05 | Treating New York City’s Drinking Water
- 06 | Testing and Monitoring Water Quality
- 07 | Contaminants Threatening New York City’s Water Supply
- 08 | New York Leads the Fight Against PFAS
- 09 | Protecting New York City’s Aging Distribution Pipes
- 10 | Should New York City Residents Use In-Home Water Filters?
Does New York City tap water really live up to all the hype?
Their streets might be grimy, the Hudson Bay might be a toxic wasteland, but their drinking water ain’t half bad!
As it turns out, the Big Apple is helping raise the bar for water quality in big cities.
Sure, there’s room for improvement, but overall they’re doing a heck of a job.
Let’s take a closer look at water quality in NYC…
Several organizations work together to ensure that NYC’s water is safe to drink, including:
- The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) set legal limits for common contaminants.
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled water production.
- The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) conducts day-to-day testing and monitoring. They also run a variety of watershed protection programs to keep the streams, creeks, rivers and reservoirs in tip-top shape.
Here’s what the DEP found in their annual water quality report:
Every year, the DEP conducts the New York City Drinking Water Supply and Quality Report.
According to the 2020 report, New York City met every national and state standard for water quality.
They collected 43,600 samples throughout every neighborhood in the city.
Then, just for good measure, scientists analyzed them over 530,000 times at four different laboratories. Talk about thorough!
But are these results really as flawless as they might seem?
Not everyone agrees...
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a non-profit organization that conducts independent research on public water and consumer products.
Their annual water quality report pulls test results from the New York Department of Health (DOH) and the U.S. EPA Enforcement and Compliance History database (ECHO).
Although they agree that New York City's water passes federal standards, they were less than impressed…
According to the EWG, “Legal does not necessarily equal safe, and getting a passing grade from the federal government does not mean the water meets the latest health guidelines.”
The EPA hasn't updated their regulations in almost 20 years, and many healthcare professionals now recommend much lower safety limits.
Worst of all, government regulators don’t even test for some of the most dangerous pollutants! Yikes!
In the EWG’s latest report, they found 9 cancer-causing contaminants above healthy limits, including:
- Bromodichloromethane: 76x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Bromoform: 5.7x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Chloroform: 76x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Chromium: 2.1x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Dibromochloromethane: 4.3x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Dichloroacetic acid: 73x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Haloacetic acids: 361x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Total trihalomethanes: 253x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
- Trichloroacetic acid: 214x EWG HEALTH GUIDELINES
Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide which guidelines to follow.
But if you want to play it safe, an in-home water system is one of the best ways to protect your family (more on that in a sec).
For now, let’s take a closer look at where New York City gets its drinking water...
New York City gets its drinking water from the Catskill/Delaware and Croton watersheds in upstate New York.
Catskill/Delaware provides roughly 96 percent of NYC’s water, and Croton supplies the rest.
The watersheds cover 2,000 square miles, including 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes.
That's a whole lotta water!
Altogether, they provide one billion gallons of water to more than 8.3 million NYC residents, plus nearly half the population of New York State.
New York’s watershed is incredibly pure by national standards, but it still requires a lot of careful observation to keep it safe.
Luckily, NYC’s treatment plants got you covered!
New York City uses a few different treatment methods to keep your water squeaky clean, including:
- Coagulation
- Activated carbon and sediment filtration
- Chlorine
- Ultraviolet (UV) light
- Phosphoric acid
- Sodium hydroxide
- Fluoride
Water from the Catskill/Delaware treatment plant is so pure that it doesn’t even require basic filtration. In fact, it’s one of only five large city water supplies that arrives that clean!
The Croton plant, on the other hand, undergoes both coagulation and filtration to remove large particles and impurities.
Here's what the treatment process looks like in a nutshell:
Step #1: Coagulation uses chemicals to cluster together large particles so they can be easily removed.
Step #2: Next, the water flows through activated carbon and sediment filters to remove dirt, debris and other trace contaminants. Water from the Catskill/Delaware Treatment Plant gets to skip these initial steps and heads straight to the disinfection phase where it’s treated with chlorine and UV light.
Step #3: The water is disinfected with the chemical chlorine. Early research shows that long-term chlorine exposure may increase the risk of cancer and birth defects. Government officials, however, feel that the benefits outweigh the potential health risks. For now, chlorination remains the gold standard for water disinfection around the world.
Step #4: After chlorination, the water is blasted with UV light to kill any remaining microorganisms. Unlike chlorine, UV treatment is harmless to humans.
Step #5: Last but not least, the treatment plant adds food-grade phosphoric acid, sodium hydroxide and fluoride.
- Phosphoric acid creates a protective film around distribution pipes to reduce the release of heavy metals like lead.
- Sodium hydroxide balances pH and protects household pipes from corrosion.
- Fluoride is added to prevent cavities, although this is also somewhat controversial.
Some studies show that fluoride can have long-term side effects like skeletal fluorosis, a condition that alters bone structure, calcifies the ligaments, and causes joint pain and stiffness.
Fortunately, in-home reverse osmosis systems can remove up to 99.9% of fluoride and chlorine from your tap water.
Next, we’ll explore how the DEP tests and monitors New York City's water supply…
The Department of Environmental Protection conducts over 500,000 tests a year to monitor NYC’s distribution system, feeder streams and upstate reservoirs.
They take countless samples and analyze the water for microorganisms, chemicals, metals, minerals and other organic compounds.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the DEP’s rigorous testing practices in 2020:
- Regularly tested 1,000+ water quality sampling stations throughout New York City.
- Performed 363,200 analyses on 31,300 samples and found that they met all state and federal standards.
- Tested an additional 12,300 samples from upstate watersheds.
- Took more than 2.7 million robotic measurements at reservoirs to optimize water quality.
The bottom line is, New York City’s water is under a microscope 24/7 to make sure it’s safe.
That’s great news because there’s a lot of dangerous contaminants to lookout for...
As water flows down rivers and makes its way through the distribution system, it has plenty of opportunities to pick up pollutants like:
- Hard minerals
- Heavy metals
- Radioactive materials
- Microbial contaminants
- Chemical contaminants
- Pesticides and herbicides
Many of these compounds occur naturally in the rocks and soil, but most are the result of human activity from industry and manufacturing.
Here’s some of the most common contaminants that threaten the city’s water:
Lead is a heavy metal that’s found naturally in the environment and is used in old distribution pipes and household plumbing.
Over time, pipes start to break down and leach lead into the water supply.
Lead exposure can cause serious health issues, especially in young children, infants and pregnant women.
It can lead to behavioral problems, low IQ, problems with hearing, growth delays and learning difficulties.
Short-term signs of repeated lead exposure include:
- Abdominal pain
- Constipation
- Sleep problems
- Headaches
- Irritability
- Aggressive behavior
- Loss of appetite
- Fatigue
- Numbness or tingling in the extremities
New York City uses 7,000 miles of lead-free aqueducts, tunnels and water mains, but unfortunately not all of their distribution pipes are lead-free…
Buildings built before 1961 may be connected to lead service lines, and homes built before 1986 may contain lead plumbing components.
Although water utilities are doing their best to protect your tap water, lead from old pipes is still a threat.
You can find out if you’re connected to lead service lines by viewing the city’s interactive map of the distribution system.
The city also offers free lead testing kits to all NYC residents. You can request a free kit by calling 311 or visiting their website here, but keep in mind that DIY test kits can be inaccurate.
Actually, the best way to test your tap water is to send a water sample to an EPA-certified testing lab in your area. Professional tests usually cost between $15 to $50.
Here’s a few simple steps you can take to reduce the risk of lead exposure in your home:
- Hire a licensed plumber to find and replace plumbing fixtures and service lines that contain lead.
- Remove and clean the faucet screen at least once a month. A dirty faucet screen is more likely to trap lead particles.
- Use cold water for cooking and drinking. Hot water is more likely to contain lead.
- Run your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes if the faucet hasn’t been used for several hours.
- Install a reverse osmosis (RO) system to remove up to 99.9% of lead and other harmful contaminants.
Cryptosporidium and Giardia are microorganisms that cause intestinal illnesses with symptoms like diarrhea, abdominal cramps and nausea.
Some people are more vulnerable to infection, especially people with weakened immune systems like…
- Chemotherapy patients
- HIV/AIDS patients
- Organ transplant recipients
- Elderly individuals
- Infants
Fortunately, these microorganisms are easily killed in treatment plants through chlorination and UV disinfection.
The city conducts regular surveys to monitor residents for gastrointestinal symptoms so that they can identify outbreaks early.
Federal and state law requires all water suppliers to notify residents about the potential risks of Cryptosporidium and Giardia.
Chemicals can sneak into the distribution system through runoff from farms, factories, and everyday household products like cleaning supplies.
One of the worst contaminants are a group of plastic compounds called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
PFAS are known as “forever chemicals” because once they enter the waterways they’re almost impossible to remove.
Studies show that PFAS cause reproductive and developmental side effects in laboratory animals.
Once inside the body, they disrupt hormones and may even increase the risk of cancer.
New York State is taking serious initiative to show PFAS who’s boss.
In July 2020, Governor Cuomo announced that New York has the nation’s strictest maximum contaminant levels for PFAS, PFOA, PFOS and other common forms of polyfluorinated substances.
"While the federal government continues to leave emerging contaminants like 1,4-Dioxane, PFOA and PFOS unregulated, New York is leading the way by setting new national standards that help ensure drinking water quality and safeguard New Yorker's health from these chemicals," Governor Cuomo said.
New York limits PFOA and PFOS to 10 parts per trillion --- among the lowest in the US.
The new regulations require public water utilities throughout the state to regularly test for these harmful chemicals.
New York's public reservoirs are part of the state's never-ending development of their water network. Today, the water system stretches all the way from big cities to quite suburbs. The reservoirs are some of the state's most popular public spaces!
New York City is also taking steps to repair and replace its aging distribution pipes.
The average NYC water main is 66 years old and many are lined with lead --- that’s a dangerous combo!
Worst of all, these pipes are breaking down at an alarming rate.
At least one water main breaks in New York City every day, and each break is an opportunity for lead and pollutants from the surrounding soil to leach into the system.
Although New York’s treatment plants add phosphate to the water to decrease the release of lead, it’s still not enough to prevent it entirely.
That’s why the DEP is currently upgrading the Catskill/Delaware aqueduct with steel and concrete liners to prevent further deterioration and reduce lead contamination. The program is the largest public works project in the Catskills in more than 50 years.
Although these are all great steps forward, there’s still a lot of work to be done before NYC tap water can be declared 100% toxin-free...
From lead to chemical disinfectants, New York City tap water is still far from pristine.
In fact, none of the nation’s tap water is entirely free of harmful pollutants.
The only way to ensure that your family is safe is to install an in-home water filter.
Luckily, there are plenty of effective filters to choose from…
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems are one of the most effective types for residential use.
High-end systems can remove up to 99.9% of dangerous pollutants, including lead, chlorine, PFAS, pesticides and nuclear particles.
Cloud Water Filters also remineralize with healthy electrolytes for water that’s perfectly alkaline and delicious.
They even use built-in software that syncs to an app on your phone so you can monitor your water quality 24/7.
Click here to learn more.
