DEP uses near real-time water quality data to guide its operations (i.e., the selection and routing of water) to achieve optimum quality for consumers. Historical data is used to evaluate the effectiveness of watershed protection programs, and model predictions of future water quality are used to understand potential impacts to the water supply under different infrastructure and climate scenarios.

Specifically, the objective of this project will be to build a 3D schematic diagram of the six Catskill and Delaware system reservoirs, which account for 90 % of the City’s drinking water, and the flowpath to Kensico Reservoir and into distribution.  This will be done using existing bathymetric data in ARCGIS. Fluctuations in reservoir volume will be included in the animations according to data on reservoir elevations. The physical framework of reservoirs will then be used to display water quality data and its changes over time as water flows through each of the reservoirs. The water quality data will be either a specified analyte (such as turbidity, fecal coliform bacteria, UV254, or ASU) or an index calculated from several analytes. The time period will be selected for each animation run and may be from hours to decades. Input data for analytes will be derived from past, current, or future predictions from model runs. Concentration changes will be scaled to show increases as higher intensity in color. Once the physical framework, designated sample sites, and water quality changes over time are coordinated, the input can be from past data, current data, or future predictions.

This is a volunteer opportunity for students to use their skills for the social good.

Project Owners

DEP’s mission is to equitably provide services that promote the health and wellbeing of all 8.6 million city residents, while continuing to be a good neighbor and partner with dozens of upstate communities. New Yorkers are fortunate to have an ample supply of some of the best drinking water in the world, thanks to the foresight and toil of seven generations of DEP’s predecessors, and the continuing vigilance of its current staff. The NYC water supply remains one of only four large water supplies in the nation that is pure enough to remain unfiltered. In recent decades, DEP has invested heavily in watershed protection programs, upgrades to wastewater treatment facilities, stormwater control, and modernization of data processing resulting in significantly healthier waterways. The City’s source waters are cleaner today then they’ve been in more than a century. Still, there is much work to do, and DEP is investing in major capital upgrades to ensure that recreational opportunities can be further expanded.  DEP also ensures that the City’s massive water resource and water treatment infrastructure, which extends more than 100 miles from the city, is maintained in good operating condition and is resilient.

Full details can be found here.

Project timeline

  • Earliest starting date: 10/01/2020
  • End date: 01/01/2021
  • Number of hours per week of research expected during Fall 2020: ~10
  • Project is ongoing and will be reviewed for future directions at the end of the semester

Candidate requirements

  • All students should have excellent and geospatial data analytic skills, and an interest in water supplying a dense urban environment under conditions of climate change would be helpful.
  • Student eligibility: freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, master’s
  • International students: eligible