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Press Release
December 23, 2008
Seven Delaware River Consevancy Groups Urge Four Governors and New York City Mayor to Immediately Lower Reservoir Levels to Prevent Flooding
Conservancy groups called on New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New York City (the "decree parties") to take immediate action to lower levels in the City's Delaware River reservoirs to prevent flooding. "All three reservoirs will soon start spilling. A major flood could occur with any large rainfall if the water levels aren't lowered quickly," said Chuck Schroeder, president of Drowning on the Delaware.
"Last spring, we only avoided flooding because the rains stopped. The decree parties' flexible flow management plan (FFMP) didn't save us, Mother Nature did, " said Scott Burgess, chairman of RAFT. "To say that the reservoirs do not have a responsibilty to protect against flooding is unacceptable," added Elaine Reichart, president of Aquatic Conservation Unlimited.
"In the summer, the plan doesn't release enough water to prevent lethal temperatures and support the river's ecosystem. The rainbow trout and the dwarf wedge mussel cannot survive in such conditions," said Dan Plummer, chairman of Friends of the Upper Delaware River.
The City built up billions of gallons this fall when the diversion tunnel was shut off for inspections. "If they had planned ahead, they could have given us that water in the summer to keep water temperatures down and flows up," said Lee Hartman, of the Pennsylvania Council of Trout Unlimited. Elizabeth Maclin, vice president for Eastern Conservation at Trout Unlimited added, "The FFMP must be redesigned to provide larger and more consistent releases."
The immediate problem is water cannot be removed fast enough to keep pace with more rain. "Additional measures such as siphons can be installed quickly, could double the release rate, and are being used at the City's Gilboa Dam," said Diane Tharp, executive director of North Delaware River Watershed Conservancy.
"How many floods will we need to endure before the Governers and Mayor Bloomberg do the right thing and use these reservoirs to prevent flooding?" asked Gail Pedrick, director of the Delaware Waterside Conservancy. Chuck Schroeder added, "If the decree parties fail us and conditions get worse, it will be up to the Delaware River Basin Commission to declare an emergency and take action."
Sincerely,
Jeff Zimmerman
Zimmerman & Associates
jjzimmerman@comcast.net
(240) 912-6685
PRESS CONTACT: Dan Plummer
(607-363-2001)
catskilldan@mac.com
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