$250,000 Grant for Rockland to Study Ways to Conserve Water

Rockland County has received a $250,000 grant to help pay for a water conservation study.

It's timely, given that Rockland has had a relatively dry spring. The total rainfall for January through March was 7.58 inches, slightly below the historic average of 8.66 inches.

April has also been slightly below average.

“Rockland is slightly below its historic precipitation average, but our main reservoir remains nearly full,” Rockland County Executive Ed Day said. “Even so, it’s always important to conserve water and use it wisely.”

His statement was echoed by Deb Rizzi, spokesperson for Suez, the company that used to be called United Water, and which provides nearly all Rockland municipalities with water for drinking and firefighting, the exceptions being Nyack, South Nyack and Suffern. The utility company has about 73,000 customers in Rockland, serving approximately 87 percent of residents.

Lake DeForest is full, Rizzi said. "We always encourage people to be mindful of how they use water and to conserve whenever possible."

Rockland residents and county leaders fought off Suez's plan to construct a desalination plant on the Hudson River to increase water supply. Since then, the Rockland County Task Force on Water Resources Management has been pursuing water conservation as a long-term strategy.

State Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee helped secure the money, to be used by the task force to study ways the county can conserve.

RELATED:

• Suez Told to Abandon Plans for Desalination Plant
• State Public Service Commission Rejects United Water's Desalination Plant, Surcharge
• Learn How to Save Water
• County Water Task Force to Discuss Drought

The task force, chaired by Legislator Harriet Cornell and including County Executive Ed Day and Legislative Chairman Alden H. Wolfe as members, has as its goal delaying or completely foregoing the need for any new water treatment plant while also encouraging good water use practices.

The desalination plant— a controversial idea that dominated Rockland’s imagination for years—was based on projections that the county’s water demand would have surpassed supply by 2015. After the New York State Public Service Commission nixed it in 2014, the PSC pointed out that the need could arise again in the near future, and that it was crucial that the community, the company and the PSC explore and adopt all reasonable actions to defer the need for new supply and explore opportunities for alternative sources before 2020.

Since its inception, the Task Force has held a symposium; commissioned a report by national water conservation and efficiency expert Amy Vickers, Water Losses and Customer Water Use in the United Water New York System; created five committees to focus on details related to conservation, groundwater and stormwater, drought and flood control, systems management and community communications; and teamed up with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Rockland and Rockland BOCES to offer a course on saving water.

“This is a unified effort to educate about the value of a precious resource – water - and to work as a community to use water wisely - by planning, by preventing over-development, and by conserving,” Cornell said. “With the help of our partners in the State Legislature, spearheaded by Assemblywoman Jaffee, Rockland will be a model for water conservation.”

Jaffee said she was proud to partner once again with the task force and to spearhead the effort to secure the $250,000 in the new state budget.

“Water conservation is paramount in Rockland County if we wish to avoid building expensive water sources that would also increase the cost of water for residents and businesses alike,” Jaffee said. “I congratulate the Task Force for its forward-thinking approach and focus on meaningful conservation of our most precious resource, so we can make sure we have the safe, affordable and sustainable water supply we need today and for generations to come.”