Obama Administration Releases First Installment of the Quadrennial Energy Review

The Obama Administration released the first installment of its Quadrennial Energy Review (“QER”), which focuses on energy transmission, storage, and distribution (“TS&D”). 

The QER was first launched in Obama’s Climate Action Plan in June 2013, and is designed to provide an overview of and guidance for federal energy policy. The QER takes the form of annual installments over the four-year period to create a “moving spotlight” on elements of the energy system. The Presidential Mandate instructed that the first such element be American infrastructure of transporting, transmitting, and delivering energy, given the importance of these segments for the continued growth of our energy industry.

The QER identifies four objectives to address energy infrastructure needs and challenges: (1) improving TS&D infrastructure; (2) modernizing the electric grid; (3) modernizing energy security infrastructures; and (4) improving shared transport infrastructures such as rail and waterways. Other cross-cutting issues are covered in the QER, such as integrating North American energy markets; addressing environmental issues; enhancing employment and workforce training; and siting and permitting.

A number of specific recommendations and proposed plans are contained in the QER that could directly impact the oil and gas industry. It suggests that the Department of Energy (“DOE”) create a competitive program to foster natural gas pipeline replacement, at a cost of $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion over a 10-year period. The QER also proposes that DOE should determine the appropriate size and configuration of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and makes sure that it can be used effectively. 

A grant program is also proposed for the Department of Transportation to improve energy transportation infrastructure connectors, as a cost of $2 billion to $2.5 billion over 10 years. Finally, the QER urges Congress to approve Obama’s $10 million request to help update Greenhouse Gas Inventory estimates of methane emissions from natural gas systems.

Officials representing the QER Task Force explained that its efforts aimed to integrate input from all federal agencies covering these energy issues, and from outreach to a variety of stakeholders. The full report can be found here: http://energy.gov/epsa/downloads/quadrennial-energy-review-full-report.

Natural Gas Act Does Not Pre-empt State Antitrust Laws

 April 28, 2015 

 

 

Last week, the U. S. Supreme Court handed down an important decision on the jurisdictional reach of the Natural Gas Act (NGA).  The Court concluded that the NGA does not pre-empt a long-running group of state-law antitrust suits aimed at alleged misconduct by natural gas pipelines.

In Oneok, Inc. et al. v. Learjet, Inc. et al., No. 13-271, the Court considered claims brought as class actions and consolidated in 2003 as the Western States Wholesale Natural Gas Antitrust Litigation in federal court in Nevada.  The plaintiffs are manufacturers, hospitals, and other institutions that buy natural gas directly from interstate pipelines.  These purchasers sued more than a dozen pipelines for reporting false information to natural gas price indexes, claiming injury because contract prices, based on the price indexes, were inflated by the allegedly false reports.

The pipelines sought summary judgment on the ground that the NGA pre-empted plaintiffs’ state-law antitrust claims. The District Court granted summary judgment in defendants’ favor, but the Ninth Circuit reversed. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to clarify the reach of the NGA and, in a 7-to-2 decision, affirmed the Ninth Circuit’s ruling, despite an amicus opinion, and argument, by the U.S. Solicitor General, that the NGA preempted plaintiffs’ claims.  The case now goes back to the trial court where the Plaintiffs may continue to prosecute their claims.

While the NGA  gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) the authority to determine whether rates charged by natural-gas companies or practices affecting such rates are just and reasonable, 15 U. S. C. §717d(a),  it also limits FERC’s jurisdiction to the transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce;to wholesale sales for resale of natural gas; and to natural-gas companies engaged in such transportation or sale. §717(b). The States have jurisdiction over retail sales and distribution.

The Supreme Court majority held that, although the alleged manipulation of gas indexes may have affected prices used in interstate and retail transactions, state-law antitrust claims were not pre-empted because the suits were aimed at obtaining damages only for excessively high prices in retail transactions, to which the NGA does not apply.

Writing for the Court, Justice Stephen Breyer emphasized that the NGA “was drawn with meticulous regard for the continued exercise of state power.” Thus, where a practice affects non-jurisdictional as well as jurisdictional sales, preemption can be found only where the target at which the state-law claims aim falls within the pre-empted field.  Here, the majority said that respondents’ claims are aimed at practices affecting retail rates, a matter “firmly on the States’ side of [the] dividing line.”

The case is being returned to the District Court to resume proceedings on the merits of state-law antitrust claims, and potentially, damage claims, after a twelve-year detour through the thickets of federal preemption law.

Notably for the industry, Justice Scalia and Chief Justice Roberts expressed in dissent the concern that the Court’s decision may impair “uniformity of regulation” because now “pipelines will have to ensure that their behavior conforms to the discordant regulations of 50 States – or, more accurately, to the discordant verdicts of untold State antitrust juries.”

Source: http://www.energyenvironmentallawadviser.com

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) made important changes to the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”) effective April 1, 2015.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) made important changes to the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”) effective April 1, 2015.  You should be aware of these changes and their potential impacts on your overall homeowner or business insurance program for two reasons.

First, federal law requires buildings located in FEMA-identified flood hazard areas to have NFIP flood insurance as a condition of receiving federal aid or loans from federally insured lenders.  This means that if you plan to obtain, increase, extend or renew a federally insured loan – including a second mortgage, home equity loan or refinancing – for a property located in such a flood hazard area, you will need to show you have flood insurance. Second, Congress recently authorized a nationwide flood zone remapping effort that could greatly expand the number and size of these FEMA-identified flood hazard areas, with the result that many properties that do not currently need flood insurance may have to obtain it in the future or be shut out of any federally insured financing.

Background

• Congress created the NFIP in 1968 as an alternative to the federal government’s traditional methods of dealing with floods and flood damage: constructing levees and providing federal disaster assistance.  Under the NFIP, FEMA makes federally backed flood insurance available to property owners and tenants in “participating communities” that have agreed to regulate the use of their flood-prone land in order to reduce future flood-related losses.  NFIP insurance is available for any property in a participating community, regardless of flood zone, and is required for all properties located in a Special Flood Hazard Area (“SFHA”) and acquired using federally insured financing.

• FEMA has developed flood hazard data, identified flood risk zones and prepared official Flood Insurance Rate Maps (“FIRMs”) for most communities in the country through its flood mapping program.  Once issued, FIRMs are used by participating communities to adopt and enforce floodplain management regulations, insurers to determine full-risk policy premium rates, and federally regulated or insured lenders and federal agencies to determine when flood insurance must be purchased as a condition of a loan or financial assistance.

• In July 2012, Congress enacted the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act, which authorized FIRM remapping to establish flood zones that more accurately reflect climate change impacts, and increased policy premium rates to bring them into line with actual flood risks.  Biggert-Waters had required FEMA to phase out discounted premiums, with the result that certain policyholders – especially in higher-risk flood zones – experienced extremely steep premium increases in 2013 and early 2014.

• Public outcry over these increases intensified after Hurricane Sandy in October 2012 and led Congress to pass the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act (“HFIAA”) in March 2014.  HFIAA repealed and modified Biggert-Waters to offer relief to policyholders.

The April 1, 2015 Changes

The following key changes to the NFIP took effect for new policies and policy renewals beginning on April 1, 2015:

1) “Grandfathering” Restored.

• The NFIP has historically provided subsidies, in the form of discounted policy rates, to encourage community and property owner participation.
  • Generally, subsidized policies have covered “pre-FIRM” properties (that is, properties with structures built before the effective date of the community’s first FIRM) that are in high-flood risk locations and would otherwise pay higher premium rates.
  • In addition, the NFIP has protected properties that have been remapped into higher-risk flood zones from premium rate increases where the property owner (1) built in compliance with the FIRM in effect at the time of construction, or (2) has maintained continuous coverage since first obtaining NFIP flood insurance.
• Biggert-Waters had required FEMA to increase rates to phase out premium discounts for such “grandfathered” properties.  HFIAA restored grandfathering, with the result that these properties will continue to be classified with other properties from their former, lower-risk flood zone, and to pay at a discounted rather than full-risk rate
• In addition, Biggert-Waters had authorized FEMA to increase a property’s NFIP policy premium rate upon a change in property ownership.  HFIAA repealed FEMA’s authority to raise flood insurance rates at the time of property sale, and returned to allowing buyers to assume the seller’s current rate.

2) New Rating Procedure for Property Newly Mapped into the SFHA.

• As of April 1, 2015, a property that (1) has been “Newly Mapped” into a SFHA by a FIRM revision and (2) meets certain loss requirements will be allowed to pay a discounted first-year policy premium that is identical to the premium for a Preferred Risk Policy (“PRP”) (the PRP is a lower-cost policy available to owners and tenants of eligible residential and non-residential buildings in minimal-risk and moderate-risk flood zones):
  • Properties newly mapped into an SFHA on or after April 1, 2015 are eligible if the applicant obtains coverage that is effective within 12 months of the FIRM revision date.
  • Properties newly mapped into an SFHA between October 1, 2008 and March 31, 2015 are eligible if the applicant obtains coverage that is effective before April 1, 2016.
• After the first year, the “Newly Mapped” policy will transition to a full-risk rate through average premium increases not exceeding 18%.  However (and notably), this full-risk rate may be based on a grandfathered flood zone and/or base flood elevation.

3) New Caps on Premium Increases.

• Annual individual flood premium increases are now limited to a maximum of 18% for most policyholders (with average annual increases for each risk class limited to 15%).
• However, policy premiums for properties with historically subsidized policies – including business properties, non-primary residences, “severe repetitive loss” properties and “substantially damaged or improved” properties – are subject to an annual 25% increase (on a rate class basis, not an individual basis) until full-risk rates are achieved.

Keep in mind that certain basic facts about coverage under an NFIP Standard Flood Insurance Policy have not changed:

• It is a single-peril policy, covering only damage caused by “flood.”
• Subject to the policy limits, it pays only for direct physical damage to an insured property up to the actual cash value of the actual damages incurred or the policy limit of liability, whichever is less.
• If you do not already have a policy in place, there is a 30-day waiting period from the date of purchase (subject to certain exceptions) before a newly acquired policy goes into effect.

In sum, flood insurance is best used as one component of a multipart risk management program.  Your professional risk management and insurance advisor and your attorney can best advise you on properly structuring and maintaining such a program, so you can ensure that you are able to continue to meet your business goals.

Source: www.masslawenvironmental.com

NYSDEC: FORMER TRIPLE CITIES METAL FINISHING PLANT IN ELMIRA A THREAT TO PUBLIC HEALTH, ADDED TO THE STATE REGISTRY OF HAZARDOUS WASTE SITES

APRIL 22, 2015

The former site of an electroplating plant in Elmira presents a significant threat to public health and/or the environment, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said Wednesday.

Triple Cities Metal Finishing at 920-926 Stowell St. was added Wednesday to the state's Registry of Inactive Hazardous Waste Disposal Sites, the DEC said.

In December, the DEC completed sample collection and analysis and determined that historical plant operations at the site resulted in contamination of soil, groundwater and soil vapor at levels exceeding applicable standards.

A Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study is needed to define the nature and extent of contamination on and off the site, as well as to determine the most appropriate remedy to address associated current and potential human exposures, the DEC said.

Based upon initial evaluation, the primary contaminants of concern include chlorinated volatile organic compounds, particularly trichlorethene and associated products in groundwater, methylene chloride in sub-slab soil vapor and metals, particularly cadmium and arsenic, in surface soil and sub-slab soil beneath the building, the DEC said.

Exposure to trichlorethene is associated with several types of cancers in humans, especially kidney, liver, cervix and lymphatic system, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Methylene chloride also is a likely carcinogen to humans, the EPA said.

Drinking water in the area has not been affected because the neighborhood is served by a municipal water system, the DEC said.

Since about 1950, the company had manufactured and finished steel and aluminum products such as screws, bolts and fasteners. The site is currently used for storage, the DEC said.

In October 2000, Triple Cities moved its anodizing process, in which a protective oxide film is applied to a light metal by electroplating, from Stowell Street to the company's facility in the Broome County Industrial Park. The Elmira facility then became a warehouse and transportation center for Triple Cities.

Neighborhood residents are pleased that the site is going to be cleaned up.

Belinda Santucci said she has lived down the block from the plant at 910 Stowell St. for 12 years, and her husband who is 60 has lived there his whole life.

"It concerns me," Belinda Santucci said. "I don't want to live in that kind of conditions. I try to grow a garden and be as healthy as I can be. I don't want that in my neighborhood."

Mike Vecharino, 66, said he has lived at 100 Stowell Place his whole life and remembers the days when the site across from his home operated as a factory.

"I thought they already started cleaning that up years ago," Vecharino said. "Maybe they found some more that was still there that they didn't clean up yet."

It makes him feel better that the contamination is finally getting cleaned up, he said.

Recompense for the cost of remediation is sought from the legally responsible party, if that can be determined, DEC spokesman Peter Constantakes said. That can sometimes involve a drawn-out legal battle, he said.

"Under the state Superfund, if need be, the state can move forward with any cleanup, and then basically fight to get reimbursed for it from the responsible parties," Constantakes said. "That's generally the way it works. We don't want to hold things up if there's a dispute."

The property is owned by Gerzo Reise of Elmira, according to the Chemung County Real Property Tax Service. However, contact information could not be immediately established for that name.

According to the DEC, anyone entering the former plant site could contact contaminants in the soil by walking there, digging or otherwise disturbing the soil. Volatile organic compounds in the groundwater may move into air spaces within the soil that may move into overlying buildings and affect indoor air quality.

This process, similar to the movement of radon gas from the subsurface into the indoor air of buildings, is referred to as soil vapor intrusion, the DEC said. A potential exists for the inhalation of site contaminants due to soil vapor intrusion in the on-site buildings and in any buildings that may be developed on-site in the future.

Further evaluation is needed to determine whether soil vapor intrusion is a concern for any off-site buildings, according to the DEC.

Meanwhile, toxic waste has also been an issue at a former Triple Cities Metal Finishing facility in Broome County. The DEC submitted a $189,000 plan in March to cap and further clean a pool of trichloroethylene and other material discovered 16 years ago at the Town of Fenton site.

Under the plan, the DEC expects to remove the most significant area of soil contamination and prevent further exposure with other controls, such as site stabilization and a cover system to allow continued use of the facility as a commercial site. Additionally, piping and tanks will be removed as part of the remedy.

The environmental investigation in the neighborhood followed the discovery of a cluster of childhood cancers in the late 1990s. Scientists did not link the illnesses with pollution, although trichloroethylene levels in or under many area homes were high enough to require action based on guidelines set by the state Department of Health.

Exhaust devices to limit and prevent exposure to toxic fumes from the underground contamination is expected to continue to be maintained. More than 100 of the systems were installed in the neighborhood by 2007.

Source: http://www.stargazette.com

GAO AND THE PENTAGON’S INTERNAL INVESTIGATOR HAVE TAKEN AIM AT F-35 THE ENGINE OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE WEAPONS SYSTEM IN THE HISTORY OF THE PENTAGON.

APRIL 27, 2015

The government watchdog reports issued this month on the $400 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter join a long list of critical reviews that have picked apart the program’s ballooning cost, schedule delays, problems with software and even the helmet.

Now the Government Accountability Office and the Pentagon’s internal investigator have taken aim at the engine of the most expensive weapons system in the history of the Pentagon.

In a report issued earlier this month, the GAO, using unusually strong language, said that the “reliability of the engine is very poor” and that “the program has a long way to go to achieve” reliability goals.

Then, in a report released Monday, the Pentagon’s internal investigators said there were 61 violations in how the engine program is being managed — dinging Pratt & Whitney, the engine manufacturer, for a variety of missteps, including workers not always wearing protective gloves and masks when working around dangerous materials and assembly areas not cleared of foreign objects that could cause damage to the engines.

It is not the first time the watchdogs have found flaws in the program — the GAO lists 40 related reports that date back a decade on the F-35. And it is certainly not the last time the controversial fighter jet will face scrutiny and criticism.

But now the Pentagon and the companies involved in the program are pushing back.

Pratt & Whitney scheduled a news conference that came about an hour after the Pentagon inspector general’s report was released, to defend the program and offer context it says the investigators missed. Bennett Croswell, president of military engines for Pratt, was quick to point out that the report was an audit of the company’s management systems and adherence to the contract.

The report “does not speak to the quality of our products, which we believe are world-class,” he said. “The engine is reliable.”

The Pentagon office that oversees the F-35 disagreed with three of the inspector general’s six findings. It said that the recommendations for corrections “are unnecessary, and, if implemented, would add cost and schedule growth to the program for items that are already well understood and carefully managed.”

The aggressive stance follows a forceful defense of the program last month by Air Force Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, who said that costs are coming down, key milestones are being met and many of the issues that drove up the program’s cost have been remedied.

It is a critical time for the F-35, which is built by Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin and is often derided by critics as the “jet that ate the Pentagon.” A July 1 deadline is looming for the Marine Corps version of the plane to reach what is called “initial operational capability,” when it would be declared ready for combat.

Pentagon officials concede that the program was way over budget and years behind schedule. But in recent years, under new leadership, it has gotten back on track, they say.

Still, in its report, the GAO found that “improving engine reliability will likely require additional design changes and retrofits” that could require even more money and time.

To rebut that, Croswell came to the news conference armed with charts and data on the engine’s performance, and pointed out that the F-35 recently performed very well, taking off and landing on a carrier last fall. The company plans for the engine to last as much as 50 percent longer than required.

Asked if he was surprised by the GAO’s conclusion that the engine was unreliable, he said, “Yes, very much so.”

The entire fleet of F-35s was grounded last summer after an engine fire during a training mission at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida as a pilot was beginning to take off. The root cause of the problem has been discovered and fixed, officials said. And problems in a development program are to be expected, they said.

But as the GAO noted, the fact that the aircraft is in development at the same time it is being manufactured has caused problems, which critics have long said was a violation of the acquisition tenet “Fly before you buy.”

Another problem is that the F-35 is going to have to compete “with other large programs for limited acquisition resources,” putting pressure on the budget at a time when defense spending is being trimmed.

And the GAO predicted that, given the complexities of the program, the literature of criticism is only going to grow.

“With more complex and demanding testing ahead and engine reliability improvements needed, it is almost certain that the program will encounter more discoveries,” the report said.

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com

PADEP Study Reveals Lyme Disease Risk In All 67 Counties of Pennsylvania

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
Dept. of Environmental Protection
Commonwealth News Bureau
Room 308, Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg PA., 17120

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

04/21/2015

CONTACT:

Brandon Cwalina, DEP

717-787-1323

Wes Culp, Pennsylvania Department of Health

717-787-1783

 

DEP Study Reveals Lyme Disease Risk In All 67 Counties of Pennsylvania

HARRISBURG, PA -- For the first time, blacklegged (deer) ticks have now been observed in all 67 counties of Pennsylvania, according to researchers at The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The range expansion took place in just decades, as similar studies conducted in the mid-1960s found no specimens.

DEP’s Vector Management Program, in collaboration with the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, published the findings on the risk of tick-borne disease in Pennsylvania in the Journal of Medical Entomology on April 14. The study was authored by the DEP Vector Management team of Mike Hutchinson, Maria Strohecker, Andy Kyle, and Matt Helwig and Indiana University of Pennsylvania Professor of Biology Dr. Tom Simmons.

The research found Ixodes scapularis, the blacklegged tick, and Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, present in all 67 counties of Pennsylvania. The research also found that in recent years the blacklegged tick has become imbedded in western Pennsylvania, though the prevalence rate of Lyme disease still remains relatively lower than the rest of the state. The blacklegged tick is the primary carrier of Lyme disease, an infectious disease caused by the bite of an infected tick that can cause fever, fatigue, headache, muscle aches, and joint pain.

“DEP’s Vector Management team’s confirmation of the high risk of Lyme disease in every county of the Commonwealth verifies that every Pennsylvanian, from Philadelphia to Erie, must take precautions to prevent the spread of Lyme disease,” said acting DEP Secretary John Quigley.

“The first line of defense against Lyme disease and any other tick-borne illnesses is avoiding tick infested areas. We know, however, that as the weather becomes nicer many residents spend more time outdoors. We suggest that people wear protective clothing, use insect repellent (i.e. DEET), and do a full body check after spending time outdoors,” said acting Physician General Dr. Rachel Levine.

The study also confirmed the presence of two other human pathogen diseases, Babesiosis and Anaplasmosis, in Pennsylvania blacklegged ticks. The prevalence rates of these two diseases were much lower than Lyme disease.

Pennsylvania has reported the most cases of Lyme disease in the nation for the past five years. All Pennsylvanians are encouraged to take precautions to prevent the spread of tick-borne illnesses.

“Parents should check their children for ticks. Showering within two hours of outdoor exposure may also help prevent transmission. If an individual has been bitten by a tick, we recommend that they remove the tick carefully with a set of fine tipped tweezers. If an individual develops signs and symptoms of Lyme disease after a tick bite, we urge them to seek medical attention. Early diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease may prevent late-stage complications,” Dr. Levine said.

To view a Pennsylvania Department of Health fact sheet on Lyme disease, click here.
To view the study published in the Journal of Medical Entomology, click here.

Department of Environmental Protection Joins Trout Unlimited and New York City Students to Release Trout Into Watershed Streams

 

APRIL 28, 2015

This Year, More Than 3,000 Students from New York City and the Upstate Watersheds Will Participate in the Environmental Education Program

Photos of the Trout Release Can be Viewed on DEP’s Flickr page

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today joined Trout Unlimited, a national grassroots non-profit organization whose mission is to conserve, protect, and restore North America’s cold-water fisheries and their watersheds, and 50 pre-k and 6th grade students from P.S. 251 in Brooklyn and the Academy of Medical Technology in Far Rockaway, to release juvenile brown trout that the students have raised in their classrooms since October of last year. Since 2002, DEP and Trout Unlimited have worked together to educate students in New York City and watershed communities about the importance of protecting our shared water resources through the Trout in the Classroom program. 

The conservation-oriented environmental education program teaches young New Yorkers, ranging from pre-k to grade 12, about the connections between trout, water quality, the environment and steps they can take to improve the ecological health of the New York City watershed, which supplies over 9 million people with a reliable source of high quality drinking water every day. This year, more than 3,000 students from schools in New York City and the upstate watersheds incubated trout eggs in their classrooms and raised them into juvenile brown trout, which are also called fingerlings. The 6-month long program culminates with students taking part in a field day, where they release the fingerlings into New York City watershed streams in April and May. Today, nearly 50 fingerlings were released into the Cross River where it passes through the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation in Westchester County.

“The Trout in the Classroom program provides a tangible and practical way to educate elementary, middle and high school students about the importance of preserving the rivers, streams, reservoirs, and lakes that supply the world class drinking water we enjoy every day,” said DEP Commissioner Emily Lloyd. “Since our partnership with Trout Unlimited began 15 years ago, thousands of students from New York City and the watershed have had a chance to gain an appreciation for our shared water resources and visit the streams that supply their drinking water.”

“DEC has been an avid supporter of the Trout in the Classroom program since its launch in New York,” said DEC Commissioner Joe Martens. “By raising fish from eggs for release in local waters, Trout in the Classroom offers a unique way to actively engage students in biology and environmental conservation. These types of educational programs are valuable tools to help build the next generation of aquatic resource stewards and ecologists.”

“Trout in the Classroom in NYC is designed to connect students to their environment by providing daily hands-on interaction in the classroom,” said Trout Unlimited’s Youth Education Director Franklin Tate. “Students engage in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) learning while developing a deeper awareness and appreciation for the earth’s natural resources. Our longstanding collaboration with DEP helps us to inspire thousands of students throughout the southern New York area to become stewards of the environment.”

The Trout in the Classroom Program in southern New York began in 2002 as a partnership between DEP and Trout Unlimited and has become a prototype for similar programs across the country. The program is flexibly designed to be age appropriate as well as adaptable to individual classroom needs, enabling teachers to cultivate a wide range of skills in their students, ranging from reading and creative writing to scientific observation. Participating classrooms receive trout eggs in October, giving students the opportunity to monitor water temperature, clarity, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, and PH as the eggs develop and grow into fingerlings over the course of the school year. 

As an aquatic indicator species, the trout also provide students the chance to learn about water quality and the ecological importance of the streams that feed New York City’s water supply and the nearby forest habitat. To learn more about Trout in the Classroom in New York City and the New York City Watersheds, sponsor a school, get a school involved, or volunteer at the next Trout Release Field Day, visit the DEP website or contact Lilli Genovesi at lgenovesi@tu.org.

The New York State Department of Conservation (DEC) supports the program and sets guidelines for raising trout in the classroom and releasing them into the New York City watershed. Last fall, the DEC provided approximately 20,000 trout eggs that were distributed for free to nearly 200 classrooms. It is estimated that over 3,000 students from more than 150 schools in the southern New York area will directly participate in trout releases this year.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of water each day to more than nine million residents, including eight million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. 

Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 in the upstate watershed. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program, with a planned $14 billion in investments over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. 

This capital program is responsible for critical projects like City Water Tunnel No. 3; the Staten Island Bluebelt program, an ecologically sound and cost-effective stormwater management system; the city’s Watershed Protection Program, which protects sensitive lands upstate near the city’s reservoirs in order to maintain their high water quality; and the installation of more than 820,000 Automated Meter Reading devices, which allow customers to track their daily water use, more easily manage their accounts and be alerted to potential leaks on their properties. 

For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.