NYCkayaker A quick note on the watertrail rules -

[Richard Muller]

The waters to which the NYC permit allows (encourages) access are not
classified as suitable for in-water recreation, but for on-water recreation,
by the agency with authority to classify, NYS DEC. The standards are health
based (presence of bacteria) and health-of-the-waters based (dissolved
oxygen, for example, which allows for the survival and propagation of fish).
To encourage access (on-water boating) without 'prohibiting' activities that
could threaten health (immersion), based on government-set standards, would
be to their minds irresponsible and contradictory, as well as potentially
incurring liability. 

[Warning - Background material on water quality - may be boring]
Bonnie's right that the water was way dirtier 20+ years ago. The Clean Water
Act (1972?) mandated that all effluent be treated, and the harbor has gotten
way cleaner, with marine life returning, including the teradoes who chew up
the wood pilings, but there is still progress to be made. The goal of
advocates is to make the surrounding waters of NYC 100% swimmable, but we're
not there yet. PlaNYC 2030's goal is 90% suitability for on-water (not
in-water as the advocates would prefer) recreation, and this involves mainly
cleaning up the fouled backwaters and inlets like Coney Island Creek and
Gowanus Canal with major capital improvements to the infrastructure. So we
have a long way to go, but we're on the way. The rate of progress is
determined largely by the availability of huge capital dollars. The source
of much of the bacteria, as most know, is combined sewer overflow, which is
a feature of our infrastructure. Another PlaNYC goal is to increase the 70%
or so rate of capture when it rains. Here again, it is a matter of money,
but less so, because it is just the way the sewer system works - storm and
sanitary flow must be diverted from the 14 treatment plants in wet weather
to keep the volume of water from overwhelming the biological processes at
the plants, so it is discharged into the waters. There is also the issue of
upgrading the plants themselves in order to reduce the amount of nitrogen in
the effluent (which feeds algae and thereby reduces oxygen), but then we're
back to money again.



The rules weren't created for the watertrail guide - they are just the NYC
Parks canoe & kayak rules have been on the books for a long time. 

They are same Parks rules as the Hudson River Park Trust initially adopted
for the Hudson River Park, then revised, incorporating the suggestions that
were generated by the instant debate on this list (and probably other email
lists). 

Ralph mentioned that the original NYC Parks effort to establish kayak
launches went back to the mid 80's.

I was in high school in Seattle (wanting to be back in Hawaii) at the time
so I don't know for sure but I don't think the water was quite as clean 20+
years ago as it is now. If the rules date back to the original effort at
that time, that may be why they read the way they do, they may well have
been appropriate at the time - and that's the set of rules that's been on
the books since then. 


**********************************************************************
The NYCKayaker mailing list is hosted by www.rockandwater.net, and is a
public service offered to the kayaking community by the Hudson River
Watertrail Association. Learn more about HRWA at www.hrwa.org

To unsubscribe or change delivery options:
http://www.rockandwater.net/mailman/listinfo/nyckayaker