The proposal to open the Harlem River for swimming has raised significant concerns about public health and environmental justice, amid nearly two billion gallons of untreated sewage being dumped annually.
At a Glance
- The state considers upgrading the Harlem River’s class designation despite sewage overflows.
- Critics argue that the proposal shows a lack of real commitment to ending pollution.
- The current river classification permits secondary-contact recreation like boating, not swimming.
- Reclassification to allow swimming faces broad criticism over safety concerns after rain.
The Reclassification Controversy
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) proposes a controversial reclassification of the Harlem River to allow swimming, despite the river’s current designation as a class I waterbody, primarily intended for activities like boating. This potential upgrade to a class SB involves a Wet Weather (WW) exception, advising against swimming following rainfall, due to combined sewage overflows (CSOs). These CSOs result from exceeded sewer system capacity, leading to raw sewage discharges into the river.
Activists argue the DEC’s proposals of merely advising against swimming post-rain undermines the river’s purported upgrade, failing to genuinely reduce pollution. Their concerns highlight the same grim truth: approximately two billion gallons of untreated sewage are discharged yearly into the Harlem River. The new classification without tackling the heart of the issue is like putting a Band-Aid on a deep wound.
Financial Reality vs. Environmental Equity
Addressing the sewage overflow problem involves monumental financial implications. The DEP estimates that achieving a class SB classification without a WW exception mandates a 75% reduction in CSOs, potentially costing $9.32 billion. This expense, if translated to user fees, could strain households, notably affecting the 30% of the neighborhood living below the federal poverty level.
“It’s a way of saying, ‘We are never going to be able to clean up this river to a level where it’s actually clean all of the time,’ and it’s making that legal, instead of [the state] having to keep saying, ‘We’re trying to get there, but we can’t get there yet,’” – Joy Hecht.
The stakes extend beyond finances into issues of environmental justice. The Harlem River, once a vibrant communal hub, remains effectively off-limits, with local communities, especially those marginalized, sidelined from recreational access. Initiatives like the Tibbetts Brook Daylighting Project, aimed at reducing CSOs, offer some promise within these communities’ ongoing wrestle for equity and environmental justice.
An Uphill Battle for Clean Water
For New York City, the challenge to clean the Harlem River is ongoing. Despite investment promises and measured progress since the Clean Water Act of 1972, the DEP concedes it could be financially unfeasible to entirely eliminate sewage discharges. Thus, reclassification without addressing the underlying issues doesn’t feel like progress but a troubling concession.
“It was a space that was once such a vibrant part of our communities and somehow had been taken away, almost like a history forgotten” – Chauncy Young.
Attaining a river safe for swimming has become symbolic of broader struggles for environmental justice. With mounting voices demanding responsible stewardship of natural resources, revitalization must transcend categorization and ultimately deliver genuine, lasting environmental health to all of New York City’s residents.
