Water Shortages, Development, and Drought in Rockland County, New York1

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION DECEMBER AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION 2005 WATER SHORTAGES, DEVELOPMENT, AND DROUGHT IN ROCKLAND COUNTY, NEW YORK1 Bradfield Lyon, Nicholas Christie-Blick, and Yekaterina Gluzberg2 ABSTRACT: Knowledge of the historical variability of regional cli- of 1,000 mm, an eastern boundary delineated by the mate is an essential element of successful water resource planning. Hudson River, and a population of 287,000 in 2000 (a Lacking such perspective, planners and managers can be deceived modest 635 persons per km2), the county would as to the severity of a recent climate extreme, such as drought, and place a disproportionate blame on the climate, not the integrity of appear to have an abundant supply of water. Yet on the supply system should water restrictions become necessary to closer inspection Rockland is facing some very real avoid shortages. Presented here is a vivid example of how develop- water challenges. Between 1995 and 2002 the county ment, a lack of adequate planning, and climate variability have declared three drought emergencies, with the latest converged to produce three water emergencies in Rockland County, round of water shortages being described by one coun- New York, since 1995. An examination of climate data over the past century indicates that the severity of the recent droughts was well ty official as the worst on record (Raver, 2002). Why within the range of past variability. Rather than climate alone, the so many water shortages in such a short period of recent water emergencies have highlighted a significant mismatch time? Have regional climate variations over the past between supply and demand that has been developing in Rockland decade been especially severe, or is the water supply County over the past three decades. Substantial development, system itself showing signs of increased vulnerability largely in the form of single-family homes, has not been matched with a corresponding enhancement of the county’s water system. to the inevitable emergence of episodic droughts? Realistic plans for meeting current water demand will require coop- In this article the relative severity of droughts eration among all stakeholders, beginning with an acknowledge- occurring in the Rockland County region over the past ment that climate variations are inevitable, not the sole source of century is assessed, and the county’s demographics, blame when water shortages arise. water supply system, and development trends are (KEY TERMS: climate variability; suburban development; drought; precipitation; water supply.) summarized. Based on these evaluations it is argued that, in addition to variations in climate, the string of Lyon, Bradfield, Nicholas Christie-Blick, and Yekaterina Gluzberg, 2005. Water recent drought emergencies was due to an ever- Shortages, Development, and Drought in Rockland County, New York. Journal increasing stress on the county’s water supply. It is of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 41(6):1457-1469. shown that this situation has arisen because continu- ing development in the county, primarily in the form of private residences, has begun to outstrip the avail- able water supply, a factor that is now gaining INTRODUCTION increasing attention – and not just in Rockland Coun- ty. Demand driven drought is a concept that applies At first glance Rockland County, in the southeast- universally (e.g., Vorosmarty et al., 2000), although ern corner of New York State (Figure 1), does not historically it has been deemed applicable mainly in stand out as an area especially prone to water short- semi-arid regions, such as the southwestern United ages. With year-round precipitation typically in excess 1Paper No. 04081 of the Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) (Copyright © 2005). Discussions are open until June 1, 2006. 2Respectively, Associate Research Scientist, International Research Institute for Climate and Society, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Monell Building, Room 110, Palisades, New York 10964; Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Lamont- Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, 215 Seismology, Palisades, New York 10964; and Environmental Biology major and Rabi scholar, Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, 10th Floor Schermerhorn Extension, 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, New York 10027 (E-Mail/Lyon: [email protected]). JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION 1457 JAWRA LYON, CHRISTIE-BLICK, AND GLUZBERG Figure 1. Reference Map of Rockland County, New York. States. An increasing awareness, however, of the full, scarcity has itself fallen under scrutiny and viewed multidimensional aspects of securing sustainable outside the confines of regional climate variations water supplies is emerging (Downing and Bakker, (Brookshire et al., 2002). Thus, while the recent water 2000), and water demand and its management are emergencies in Rockland County provide a poignant important elements in the growing number of drought example of emerging water shortages in a “water action plans in the United States (Wilhite, 2000). abundant” region, the attendant issues are of great Demand side management is being considered as a interest much more generally. tool in crafting water policy, and the concept of water JAWRA 1458 JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION WATER SHORTAGES, DEVELOPMENT, AND DROUGHT IN ROCKLAND COUNTY, NEW YORK PHYSIOGRAPHY, LAND USE, AND CLIMATE southward into the region from Canada. Heavy down- pours are not uncommon during summer thunder- Rockland is the southernmost county west of the storms, and tropical weather systems from the Hudson River in New York State, centered about 40 Caribbean and tropical Atlantic occasionally can pro- km northwest of New York City. It covers an area of duce large amounts of rainfall in the area, especially 451 km2, with variable topography consisting of from late summer into November. rolling hills in the eastern Piedmont region and of rather steeper terrain in western Highland areas. The more than 60 km eastern boundary of the county ROCKLAND’S WATER SYSTEM coincides with the estuary of the Hudson River. Deposits of stratified glacial fluvial sand and gravel provide numerous local aquifers, with the Ramapo- Rockland’s water supply is independent from the Mahwah aquifer in western sections of the county system that serves the New York City metropolitan being the most significant for public water supply. area, and all of Rockland’s water is derived from sur- The Ramapo aquifer is hydraulically linked to flow in face and ground water sources located within the the Ramapo River, and recharge occurs largely within county’s borders. A private company, United Water of the northern 70 percent of the Ramapo River water- New York (UWNY), supplies water to about 90 per- shed, approximately 290 km2 in area (Rockland Coun- cent of the population. Numerous small water compa- ty Planning Board, 2001). The largest freshwater nies (serving from fewer than 50 to as many as 15,000 body in the county is Lake DeForest and on a regional people) provide about 7 percent of the supply, and an scale, the Ramapo River and much of Rockland are estimated 6,000 to 8,000 private wells account for the located within the northernmost section of the Passaic remaining 3 percent (see Figure 2). United Water of watershed, which extends southward into northern New York obtains its water from three main sources: New Jersey (see Figure 1). Lake DeForest, a 25 million m3 reservoir that on Rockland County is comprised of five towns and 19 average supplies approximately 35 percent of annual incorporated villages. Parks constitute the single water; the Ramapo Valley Well Field (RVWF), which largest land use in Rockland, at 31 percent of the consists of 10 relatively shallow wells in the uncon- total area, with over 12,000 ha being state parkland. fined sand and gravel surficial aquifers of the Ramapo The largest category of developed land is for single- and Mahwah River valleys and accounts for 20 per- family residences, accounting for 26 percent of land cent of production; and more than 40 wells drilled into area, with residential areas representing 30 percent bedrock in the Triassic Passaic Formation in the cen- overall. The footprints of commercial and business tral and eastern portions of the county that produce enterprises account for 1.7 percent, and agriculture the remaining 45 percent. The dam creating Lake 0.3 percent. Approximately 10 percent of the county is DeForest was built in 1957, and a water treatment vacant land, providing significant opportunities for plant was installed in 1964 in order for Rockland to continued growth, but only if appropriate infrastruc- use the reservoir as a public water supply. Subse- ture and resources such as water can be developed quent upgrades to the treatment plant have signifi- (Rockland County Planning Board, 2001). cantly increased withdrawal capacity, while the The climate of the region is characterized by strong overall storage capacity of the lake has not changed seasonality and is affected by both continental and since its creation. In 2004, UWNY’s total water pro- maritime influences. The annual temperature range duction was over 48 million m3 with a loss of roughly averages near 30˚C, with wintertime temperatures 17 percent due to leaks, main breaks, firefighting and frequently below freezing and summertime tempera- other causes (UWNY, 2005). The public water supply tures often above 30˚C. Precipitation is distributed is regulated under Part 5 of the New York State sani- fairly evenly throughout the year, with annual totals tary code by the state’s Department of Environmental typically in excess of 1,040 mm. Wintertime precipita- Conservation and Public Service Commission. The tion largely occurs as storm systems travel into the Rockland County Department of Health is primarily region from the west and south, with the western responsible for assuring water quality. Thus, the Atlantic Ocean serving as a primary source of mois- county, state, and a private company are the primary ture.

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