In general, the sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells.  As water travels over the surface of the landor through the ground, it dissolves naturally-occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, it can also pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activities.  As a result, contaminants that may be present in source water include:  microbial contaminants; inorganic contaminants; pesticides and herbicides; organic chemical contaminants; and radioactive contaminants.  In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the State and the EPA prescribe regulations which limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems.   State Health Department and the FDA regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

Our water supply is obtained from the upstate Catskill and Delaware watersheds of the New York City water system.  We have two connections to the City system from which we take our water.  One connection is at Shaft 22 of the Delaware Aqueduct in Yonkers and the other is at Rye Lake, the eastern portion of Kensico Reservoir, in Harrison.  The water from Shaft 22 is a blend of water from the upstate Catskill and Delaware watersheds, while the water from Rye Lake is, under most circumstances, entirely from the Delaware watershed.  During 2010, our system did not experience any water source restrictions.

Source Water Assessment Program

The NYSDOH has evaluated the susceptibility of water supplies statewide to potential contamination under the Source Water Assessment Program (SWAP), and their findings are summarized in the paragraph below.  It is important to stress that these assessments were created using available information and only estimate the potential for source water contamination.  Elevated susceptibility ratings do not mean that source water contamination has occurred or will occur in the WJWW system.  The WJWW provides treatment and regular monitoring to ensure the water delivered to consumers meets all applicable standards.  Although surface waters in general are highly sensitive to microbial contaminants, NYSDOH's assessment found no noteworthy risks to water quality.

New York City Watershed Protection

The WJWW obtains its water from the Catskill/Delaware watersheds west of the Hudson River located in upstate New York.  The reservoirs in this mountainous rural area are relatively deep with little development along their shorelines.  The main water quality concern associated with land cover is agriculture, which can contribute microbial contaminants, pesticides, and algae producing nutrients.  There are also some potential contamination concerns associated with residential lands and associated wastewater discharges.  However, advanced treatments which reduce contaminants are in place for most of these discharges.  There are also a number of other discrete facilities, such as landfills, chemical bulk storages, etc. that have the potential to impact local water quality, but large significant water quality problems associated with these facilities are unlikely due to the size of the watershed and surveillance and management practices.

Due to NYCDEP intensive watershed protection efforts, the SWAP methodologies applied to the rest of the state were not applied for the WJWW.  Additional information on the water quality and protection efforts in these New York City watersheds can be found at NYCDEP's web site www.nyc.gov/dep/watershed.

The WJWW obtains its water from the New York City water supply system.  The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP) has oversight of a series of programs to evaluate and protect source water quality within these watersheds.  The three main areas of focus of these programs are: the enforcement of strengthened Watershed Rules and Regulations; the acquisition and protection of watershed lands; and the implementation of partnership programs that target specific sources of pollution in the watersheds.  These efforts by the City are reviewed and tracked by Federal and State regulatory agencies and have resulted in a Filtration Avoidance Determination (FAD) being issued in 2007 by the New York State Department of Environmental Protection and New York State Department of Health.  This FAD is effective until 2017.

Water Treatment

Water taken by WJWW from Shaft 22 is fluoridated and chlorinated by NYCDEP at Kensico Reservoir.  Subsequently, at its Larchmont Station, WJWW provides additional chlorination, adds caustic soda to increase pH, and adds a blended poly-orthophosphate as a corrosion inhibitor.

Water taken by WJWW from the Kensico Reservoir at its Rye Lake Station is fluoridated, chlorinated and provided with a blended poly-orthophosphate at the source.  After the water passes through WJWW’s Purchase Tanks, caustic soda is added for pH control.