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December 22, 2008
The Honorable Jon S. Corzine
Governor, State of New Jersey
P.O. Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625
The Honorable Ruth Ann Minner
Governor, State of Delaware
Tatnall Building
William Penn St., 2d Fl.
Dover, DE 19901
The Honorable David A. Paterson
Governor, State of New York
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224
The Honorable Edward G. Rendell
Governor, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
225 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, PA 17120
The Honorable Michael R. Bloomberg
Mayor of New York City
City Hall
New York, NY 10007
Re: Delaware River
Dear Governors Corzine, Minner, Paterson and Rendell and Mayor Bloomberg:
The communities, businesses and homeowners living in the Delaware River Basin yet again are
facing the very real possibility of another devastating flood. Currently, the combined storage level of the three New York City-owned reservoirs in the upper Delaware River basin is over 97% of capacity, more
than 20% greater than the long term average for this time of year. The National Weather Service is predicting
above normal precipitation for the reservoirs watershed area for the winter months. With the
rain/snow events over the last week and similar weather predicted this week for the area, the reservoirs
may start spilling sometime between Christmas and the new year. The combination of spilling reservoirs
and excessive rainfall creates a potentially deadly scenario for the people living in the Delaware River, as
harshly witnessed in the floods of 2004, 2005 and 2006.
The four states and the City of New York are the parties to the U. S. Supreme Court's decree entered in
State of New Jersey v. State of New York, 347 U.S. 995 (1954) and it is the decree parties that are controlling
operations of these reservoirs with input from the River Master appointed by the Court. We are
asking that the decree parties take immediate action to dramatically reduce the levels in these reservoirs.
There is no time to waste debating this situation; immediate and decisive action must be taken.
Points to Consider
If the reservoirs are already full at the beginning of the year, anticipated winter storms and snow pack
runoff will almost certainly lead to another flood. After both the 2004 and 2005 floods, the warnings
from the public to politicians and to the Delaware River Basin Commission to get involved and make
changes to the management of the reservoirs fell on "deaf ears." In 2006, we had yet another devastating
flood. The flexible flow management program (FFMP) adopted by the decree parties is not getting the
job done and must be redesigned using real safe yield and consumption numbers and a more accurate
and complete computer model. In the attached letter we have asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
to apply its water engineering expertise to review the safe yields analysis prepared by experts at the New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection so that a new flow management system can be developed
based on scientifically accurate and complete data.
While the current focus must be on flood risks, the FFMP has caused significant harm to the aquatic
ecosystem, the wild trout fishery, and endangered species habitat in the upper main stem and major tributaries
during the late spring and summer months. Larger and more consistent releases to support the
river's conservation resources not only will help maintain the biodiversity of the watershed, but also can
mitigate winter and early spring flood risks. Such release practices must be part of a new flow management
system to maintain the biodiversity and sustainability of the watershed's resources.
In October when New York City stopped diverting water from the reservoirs for a month to perform dive
work on a dewatering shaft in the Rondout - West Branch tunnel, approximately 24 billion gallons stayed
in the reservoirs that otherwise would have been diverted. If the decree parties had been informed of the
planned shutdown ahead of time, additional releases could have been made in the summer to offset the
volume of water that would not be diverted during the shutdown and to mitigate the ecological harm
caused by the low summer flows of the FFMP. Instead, to regain these 24 billion gallons of storage
space, just before the shutdown the decree parties adopted a temporary tunnel shutdown release program
that reduced the thresholds triggering increased releases. Those thresholds have all been exceeded and releases should be at the highest levels provided by the decree parties' temporary tunnel closure release
program.
However, these temporary expanded releases are not enough. Storage levels in the reservoirs continue to
rise and will reach spilling stage very soon. Even at maximum FFMP release levels, the release works
cannot keep up with the rate at which water from precipitation and runoff is filling up the reservoirs.
Expanded release mechanisms must be added to the temporary release program. Adding the same type
of siphons that were installed recently at the Gilboa Dam to each of the three Delaware River basin
reservoirs could double the current maximum release rate. Other mechanisms may be available to
reduce reservoir levels to provide a margin of safety during the coming winter and spring.
Unless measures are started right away and continued throughout the winter and into the spring, there
will be no chance of avoiding a flood if wet hydrologic conditions persist. The deputy commissioner of
New York City's Department of Environmental Protection recently promised that he would consider
increasing release rates if asked to do so by one or more of the decree parties. Clearly, expanded releases
will not adversely impact the City's water supply. With over 515 billion gallons currently in storage
and no question about the high probability of refill, there is ample water to satisfy the daily consumption
level of about 1.1 billion gallons.
As a result of the last three floods, the people of the Delaware River Basin have suffered millions of dollars
in damages to homes, businesses and the infrastructure of their communities and the loss of life. In
these tough financial times, the economic effect of another flood (to say nothing of the public safety,
environmental and psychological impacts) is unthinkable. Dealing with the effects of moderate flooding
on the streams and rivers is a fact of life. However, the public cannot and should not be asked to deal
with the mismanagement of reservoirs that allows them to spill billions of gallons of water into the river,
increasing flood crests. The decree parties collectively bear the responsibility and the liability for insuring
that the City, as a dam owner, does not increase flood crests, but instead reduces them.
Our Request
We are requesting that you, as decree parties, direct the City and the River Master to take whatever
measures are possible to expand releases to the maximum extent feasible for a period of at least 30 days.
At the end of this period, the decree parties should evaluate the hydrologic conditions of the reservoirs
and the basin and continue the maximum feasible release program for another 30 days and keep doing so
until adequate storage space has been restored in the reservoirs to effectively mitigate the risk of flooding.
We also request that you refrain from implementing counterproductive actions such as were applied
to the temporary extra release program last April or illogical constraints such as were applied to the temporary
thermal releases program last July. For once, let's put aside the "gamesmanship" and make an
honest effort to provide real and unconditional benefits to the watershed.
We have been gambling with the lives and welfare of communities in the Delaware River Basin. After
the three floods between 2004 and 2006, in April 2007, and March 2008, we came very close (one foot
or less) to flooding on the main stem again. It was by sheer luck in both years that the weather changed
and the waters receded. We strongly urge the decree parties to take immediate and decisive action on
this emergency situation. This is not the time to "hope" that the rainfall does not arrive. We anxiously
await your reply and are available to discuss any of our above proposed actions.
Sincerely,
Jeff Zimmerman
Zimmerman & Associates
jjzimmerman@comcast.net
(240) 912-6685
on behalf of:
North Delaware River Watershed Conservancy, Ltd.
Friends of the Upper Delaware River, Inc.
Aquatic Conservation Unlimited, LLC
Delaware Riverside Conservancy, Inc.
Drowning on the Delaware, Inc.
Residents Against Flood Trends
Trout Unlimited, Inc. and its New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania councils
Attachment
cc:
Delaware River Master
Executive Director, Delaware River Basin Commission
Commander, North Atlantic Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Secretary, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Commissioner, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
Commissioner, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Commissioner, New York City Department of Environmental Protection
Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Senator Thomas R. Carper
Senator Frank R. Lautenberg
Senator Robert Menendez
Senator Charles Schumer
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Senator Arlen Specter
Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.
Congressman Michael N. Castle
Congressman Robert E. Andrews
v
Congressman Frank A. Lobiondo
Congressman Jim Saxton
Congressman Christopher H. Smith
Congressman Scott Garrett
Congressman Mike Ferguson
Congressman Rodney P. Frelinghuysen
Congressman Rush D. Holt
Congressman John J. Hall
Congresswoman Kirsten E. Gillibrand
Congressman Michael R. McNulty
Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey
Congressman Michael A. Arcuri
Congressman Robert A. Brady
Congressman Chaka Fatah
Congressman Jim Gerlach
Congressman Joe Sestak
Congressman Patrick J. Murphy
Congressman Christopher P. Carney
Congressman Paul E. Kanjorski
Congresswoman Allyson Y. Schwartz
Congressman Charles W. Dent
Congressman Joseph R. Pitts
Congressman Tim Holden
State Senators and Assembly members from watershed districts in Delaware
State Senators and Assembly members from watershed districts in New Jersey
State Senators and Assembly members from watershed districts in New York
State Senators and Assembly members from watershed districts in Pennsylvania
Associated Press
New York Times
Philadelphia Inquirer
New Jersey Star Ledger
Easton Express-Times
Trenton Times
The Trentonian
Hunterdon County Democrat
Warren Reporter
River Reporter
Hancock Herald
NJN – New Jersey Public Television and Radio
December 22, 2008
Lieutenant Colonel Thomas J. Tickner
U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers
Philadelphia District
The Wanamaker Building
100 Penn Square East
Philadelphia, Pa 19107-3390
Re: Delaware River - NJDEP Safe Yields Report
Dear Col. Tickner;
We would like to take this opportunity to wish you, your family and your organization a happy and healthy
holiday season. As we come to the end of this year, our organizations are trying to assess the progress that
has been made this year towards improvements in management of both the Delaware River Reservoirs, the
Tail Waters and the Delaware River itself.
To this end, it has been four months since we, the representatives of the Aquatic Conservation Unlimited Inc.,
the Northern Delaware River Watershed Alliance , Friends of the Upper Delaware and the Delaware River
Conservancy met with you and asked you and your organization to review, vet and take a position on the NJ
DEP's "NYC Safe Yield's Report" . You agreed to do so. This letter is an inquiry to the status of your analysis.
AS you know, it is imperative that accurate data and mathematical calculations be used in managing the
River, the Tail Water Flow and the Reservoirs, and we feel this report is the best effort to date to achieve that
goal.
Some have said the "Reassessment" planned by the Decree Parties will "take care of" the inequities of the
current management regime of the River, the Tail Waters, and the Reservoirs. Unfortunately, this strategy of
waiting for such a comprehensive study is not only unrealistic but possibly deadly to both human and aquatic
life, specifically, the Dwarf Wedge Mussel and the Rainbow and Brown Trout. The good news is we need not
wait the 5 years or so that a "Reassessment" will take because a Decree Party, New Jersey, has come up with
the engineering data and calculations that can be used to create a much more safe, and ecologically sound
management program.
The first step towards producing a safe and protective plan for all stakeholders, including the good people of
New York City, is the agreed upon analysis and vetting of this NJ DEP Report by you and your organization.
If you find that the information is factual and true, then your position on this report will enhance the ability of
all of the Decree Parties to fashion the replacement plan for the FFMP (Flexible Flow Management Plan),
thus ensuring the safety and protection of the Below Reservoir Riverside Communities and the Aquatic Life
of the Tail Water.
We would be happy to meet with you again to discuss your findings at your earliest convenience. Please
contact me at 908.475.3383 so that we may set this meeting up as soon as possible.
Sincerely yours,
Elaine T. Reichart
President
Aquatic Conservation Unlimited
PRESS CONTACT: Dan Plummer
(607-363-2001)
catskilldan@mac.com
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