﻿GENERAL FEATURES 



CHAPTER I 

 CATSKILL WATER SUPPLY PROJECT 



New York city obtains its chief water supply from the Croton 

 river watershed. Other sources 1 now drawn upon are less important 

 although some of them, such as the Long Island underground 

 supply, are capable of considerable additional development. The 

 average daily consumption of Croton water was approximately 

 324,ooo,ooo 2 gallons for 1907. At the present rate of increase of 

 population the consequent daily increase in consumption of water 

 is 15,000,000 gallons in each succeeding year. 



The entire daily flow of water in the Croton river for the' 18 

 years from 1879 to l &97 averaged only 348,000,000 gallons. About 

 10,000,000 gallons per day is lost by evaporation and seepage 

 from existing reservoirs. The records for 40 years, from 1868 to 

 1907 make a somewhat better showing. Making no allowance for 

 evaporation the average flow amounts to 402,000,000 gallons. With 

 due allowance for evaporation, 3 however, this only increases the 

 daily supply as now planned by about 47,000,000 gallons. That is, 

 the possible total additional water within the Croton watershed 

 would suffice for only three years' growth of the city. Much of 

 this additional water belongs to periods of excessive precipitation. 

 To save it would require additional storage facilities for 305,000,- 

 000,000 gallons, and, it is estimated, would probably cost $150,- 

 000,000. 



1 Brooklyn is in part supplied by these additional sources which furnished 

 145,000,000 gallons daily in 1907. 



2 The figures used here as to consumption and capacity and available 

 supply are taken from the printed statements of the commissioners of the 

 New York City Board of Water Supply in a circular dated April 16, 1908, 

 and are based upon the investigation and reports of the corps of engineers 

 headed by J. Waldo Smith, chief engineer, John R. Freeman and William 

 H. Burr, consulting engineers. The reports of this commission and 

 various others that have had the responsibility of investigating the future 

 supplies for New York city have been drawn upon freely for such data. 



3 The average rainfall for the past 40 years is about 49 inches per year. 

 Only about 48 per cent of this runs into the streams. The rest evap- 

 orates or is absorbed by the vegetation or joins underground supplies 

 that do not again appear at the surface in the district. 



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