Sailing in the Cannonsville Reservoir?

DEP embarks on pilot plan

By FRITZ MAYER

DELAWARE COUNTY, NY — In the past, the New York City reservoirs were open only to a select number of boaters. Only anglers in rowboats with fishing licenses issued by the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) were allowed to ply the inviting lakes that hold the city’s drinking water supplies.

But starting this Memorial Day, if all goes as planned, along with the rowboats, the Cannonsville Reservoir will also be hosting sailboats, canoes, kayaks and johnboats or sculls. It’s part of a three-year pilot program designed to open the reservoirs to more members of the public and help spur economic development in the area.

DEP spokeswoman Mercedes Padilla said in a phone interview on February 27 that various details of the program remain to be worked out. She said there are eight launch sites planned for the lake, though the exact locations have not yet been selected. The launch sites will have portable toilets.

The DEP, of course, is charged with protecting the reservoir from invasive species such as zebra mussels. To do that, it will require that all boats going into the lake be steam cleaned by selected vendors, who will then issue certificates and tags for the boats.

Padilla said the details about which vendors will do the steam cleaning have not yet been worked out.

The permits will be good for up to seven days or the entire season.

Boats with motors will not be allowed on the reservoir, nor will rubber rafts.

If the project is successful, the practice may spread to other reservoirs in the New York City system.

Go to www.nyc.gov/watershed for information about recreation opportunities on and around the reservoirs.