What is the history of water service in New York and which people does it serve? The history of water services in New York City is broad. It goes back to when Manhattan settlers used to get water from wells and reservoirs. The city created its own water board in the year 1905. The board’s main task was to ensure that water is always available in the city. New York City, however, established its municipal water system in the year 1842. This was its first water system and the system enlarged the water network in the city. The network extended to mountains of Catskill. The mountains are approximately a hundred miles away from the city. As of now, New York’s water system is confiscated in three upstate tank systems that have nineteen reservoirs and three lakes that are controlled. The systems have a storage capacity of roughly 580 billion gallons. The amount of water that is delivered to New York City is roughly 1 billion gallons. Water is also supplied to about one million consumers in Westchester, Ulster, Putnam and orange counties that are found to the north of the city. The city’s water supply system is one of the most widespread water system found in the world. This is because it has to rely on a combination of water tunnels, canals and reservoirs that help it to meet the water demands of the 8 million populations in New York and also its visitors. New York City also has the simplest water treatment process compared to other cities in the United States of America. The reason for this is that 95% of the entire water supply is usually supplied by gravity. The remaining 5% are usually pumped.
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Which community does this water supply serve? The residents of New York City are the biggest beneficiary of the water supply in the city. The City has a population of about eight million people. Other communities served by the water supply include: Westchester, Ulster, Putnam and orange counties that are found to the north of the city. People who visit the city can also be grouped in the communities that are served by the water supply (Hubert 56).
Where does the water come from daily? As I have stated earlier on, water in New York is mainly supplied by a network of water supply that incorporates nineteen water reservoirs and three controlled lakes that are found in a watershed that extends 125 miles to the north and west of the city of New York. The total water storage of these water systems is roughly five hundred and eighty billion gallons of water. The residents of New York get access to water through gravity. 95% of the water in this case is delivered by gravity while 5% is usually pumped to help in maintaining the preferred pressure. When drought comes knocking, more pumping is done to ensure that the residents do not lack water. New York City’s water also comes from recycled water. When the residents release about 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater, the water is usually treated by the department of wastewater that runs the treatment plant. When the treatment process is over, the treatment plant then discharges the wastewater that has been already treated into the water sources found in New York City. The treated water is known as bilge water. Ground water is another source of water in New York City. Ground water normally contributes to a quarter of water supply in New York. Ground water comprises springs, well water and water pumped from rivers. In New York, ground water mainly comes from aquifers that are able to yield a high amount of ground water (Edward 67).
How is water treated? Water in New York is usually treated using four main chemicals. They are: chlorine, sodium hydroxide, orthophosphate and fluoride. Chlorine helps in killing organisms that are found in water. Fluoride is used in the treatment of water to prevent decay of teeth. Orthophosphate is used to prevent lead from leaking into drinking water; it is used to coat pipes. Sodium hydroxide helps in raising the pH levels. These four components are used in the treatment process of water. UV treatment is also used in the treatment of water. UV treatment entails passing of water though some unique lamps that do emit UV waves. This helps to inactivate dangerous microbes found in water (Hubert 77).
How is the water system pressurized to deliver water? The water systems found in New York have been built in such a way that they are flexible. This has been enabled by various interconnections. This helps in maintaining the pressure of the water. Pressure pumps are used to keep the water pressure at either a lower level or higher level. It is, however, only 5% of the water that is pumped to a preferred pressure. There are three tunnels that are used to ferry the water. There are three tunnels through which water gravity flows. The distribution structure comprises of an extensive grid of water that stretches to about 10,500 km’s that is 6,500 miles. In New York, water from fire fighting is usually secured from the city’s water system that is found at the Bronx or the city’s border in Riverdale. The fire fighters use fire hydrants that help in fire fighting (Edward 99).