at the
12 – 4 PM
July 4, 5, 6, 7, 20, 27
August 10, 17, 31
September 1, 2
VIEW our exhibits:
• “Of Rivers and Reservoirs:
…The NYC Water Story”
• NYC DEP
…“Water Resources Art and
…Poetry contest champions”
ENJOY creative activities for children
PREVIEW the East Branch Nature Preserve through interpretive signs
Groundwater in the Catskills: Challenges and Solutions, a one-day conference presented by the Catskill Water Discovery Center with the Margaretville Rotary Club, and Rotary District 7170 takes place June 7 from 10 am to 3 pm in the auditorium of the Catskill Watershed Corporation, 669 Highway 38, Arkville, NY 12406. Tickets are $10, including lunch and are available at: Eventbrite, directly:
Globally, groundwater is an essential drinking water source that is at risk in many places. Locally, residents in the Catskills, including those in the NYC watershed, encounter variable drinking water conditions via private wells or municipal systems, seemingly illogical given that the NYC’s surface water reservoir system provides exceptional drinking water to nine million people.
The conference will explore the problems Catskills municipalities, and residents, farms and other users of groundwater, encounter — problems such as arsenic, sulfur, iron, lead, copper, chlorides, coliform/E Coli, nitrates and gasses including methane, and carbon dioxide. Speakers will examine where contaminants come from and how they can be addressed.
Featured speakers include representatives from the State’s Drinking Water Source Protection Program (DWSP2), led by NYSDEC and NYS DOH in collaboration with other state agencies. Residents living within the NYC watershed, may benefit from measures put in place for protection of the surface water. A representative from NYC DEP will speak to those protections.
The afternoon panel session will include the morning’s speakers plus municipal leaders from Andes and Middletown and representatives from the Catskill Watershed Corporation, Watershed Agricultural Council, and the Delaware County Soil and Water Conservation District.
The Catskill Water Discovery Center (CWDC) is extending its exhibit of an inspiring collection of children’s artwork addressing the many aspects of water, such as where it comes from and the importance of protecting it.
The winning work of NYCDEP’s 2023 Water Resources Art and Poetry Contest will be on display at the Center during special open hours.
CWDC president Carol O’Beirne remarked:
“As you view this wonderful selection of artwork and poetry you can’t help but get the sense of how concerned these young people are about the future of their clean water sources.”
The work was created by second through twelfth grade students attending public, independent, charter or parochial schools as well as homeschoolers in New York City and in the City’s East and West of Hudson watersheds. The exhibit represents the winning entries among more than 1300 submissions to New York City Department of Environmental Protection’s 36th annual contest. More information about the contest is available at: Education Programs – DEP (nyc.gov)
Coordinator of the Water Discovery Center’s exhibit space, Don L. Myers, invites families to “have fun when visiting by testing your wits and memory with our ‘Find the Facts’ and ‘Reservoir Knowledge’ games. For kids of all ages, we have a very informative coloring book: ‘Drippy’s Water Adventure’ produced by NYCDEP’s Education Department.”
Also featured is the Center’s anchor exhibit “Of Rivers and Reservoirs: The NYC Water Story”, a timeline history of freshwater in the Catskills and its supply of 1 billion gallons per day to New York City and environs. The exhibit tells the story of the sacrifices made by local residents, the extraordinary engineering project that provides naturally filtered water to 9 million people and the cooperation that makes it all possible.
The Catskill Water Discovery Center is located at 669 County Road 38, Suite 3 — the northwest corner of the Catskill Watershed Corporation building in Arkville. Look for the bear sculpture next to the Center’s entrance.
Trails in the CWDC’s Nature Preserve will be constructed in 2024. Updates will periodically be found on this page.
The Catskill Water Discovery Center
669 Hwy 38, Suite 3 Arkville, NY 12406
Each year, 2nd through 12 grade students attending public, independent, charter or parochial school (or home schooled) in New York City and East and West of Hudson Watersheds are invited by NYC DEP (https://www.nyc.gov/site/dep/environment/water-resources-art-poetry-contest.page) to create original art and compose poetry that reflects an appreciation for our shared water resources.
Representative works from the contest are displayed annually at the Catskill Water Discovery Center.
By Carolina Farias, 4th Grade
P.S. 199 Jessie Isador Straus, Manhattan.
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