After a public comment period, the federal Environmental Protection Agency has decided that the lower portion of the Esopus Creek in New York?s Catskills region must be classified as an ?impaired? waterway.
The agency notified the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in a letter that it must take action to reduce the turbidity levels of the water, which violate federal water quality standards. The pollution ? silt, sediment and other particles ? has been worsened by discharges from a reservoir that helps supply drinking water to New York City, the E.P.A. said.
The muddying of the Lower Esopus, which the region relies on for recreation, has long been a point of contention between local residents and New York City. The city mostly blames nature, saying that more frequent rains have been stirring up sediment?and sending it down to the Ashokan Reservoir, necessitating the discharges into the Lower Esopus.
City and state officials had worked out an agreement to try to alleviate the problem, but E.P.A. officials say the parties need to go back to the drawing board to seek a satisfactory solution.
In a written statement, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said it would continue its work with the communities throughout the Lower Esopus to improve water quality. Officials said they were planning an environmental study of the water releases from the Ashokan and that the state?s agreement with the city on the Lower Esopus was under review.
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