Alternatives

Fiction: There are better choices than the Haverstraw Water Supply Project.

Fact: Engineers and water planners at United Water, through the state environmental review process, contemplated many concepts- most of which are either not viable or are more expensive than United Water’s plan- when they considered the best option for a new, long-term water supply.

Fact: The Haverstraw Water Supply Project is a more cost-effective solution than alternatives such as wastewater reuse or building a new reservoir.

Fact: The Haverstraw Water Supply Project will draw water from the Hudson River, a reliable and sustainable source of water. As a surface water reservoir, Ambrey Pond would be susceptible to threatening droughts and changing climate conditions.

Fact: The Haverstraw Water Supply Project is an environmentally sensitive choice. Building Ambrey Pond will require the construction of new dams, the cutting of thousands of trees, the flooding of hundreds of green acres, and the disruption of wildlife and an established ecosystem.

Fact: Wastewater reuse, a viable but more costly option, would require building miles of pipeline and the addition of two sets of treatments to make the water suitable for the environment and drinking purposes.

Fact: Wastewater reuse would require the same technology used in desalination facilities in order to make water suitable for drinking, resulting in energy requirements similar to the Haverstraw Water Supply Project. The Ambrey Pond Project would require pumping from Cedar Pond Brook in order to meet water needs, resulting in energy requirements than nearly equal the Haverstraw Water Supply Project.

Fact: Grey water reuse would require building a very costly system of over 1000 miles of pipeline to run parallel to drinking water pipes and would disrupt the lives of many Rockland residents during construction.

Fact: Aquifer Storage Recovery, the development of further groundwater resources and raising Lake Deforest are all limited and would not supply enough water to meet growing water demands in Rockland County.