712 



NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



This commission is in favor of using well chosen underground 

 waters, and points out the high character and large amount of 

 underground waters naturally stored on Long Island. Exten- 

 sive studies have been made of these underground sources, cover- 

 ing 1000 square miles of territory and including observations 

 of the water levels in nearly 1500 wells. The commission states 

 that at the present time no municipality can be considered as 

 satisfactorily supplied with water unless the supply is either 

 filtered artificially or naturally filtered, as in the case of ground 

 water. It also urges that works for the filtration of the Croton 

 supply be demanded at once, and advises that the reservoirs in 

 Central park be cleaned and that they be roofed over as soon as 

 the Croton supply is filtered. 



As shown by Plate XXXIV. this commission recommended 

 that Fishkill creek. Wappinger creek and the Roelilf Jansen 

 kill on the east side of the Hudson be taken, together with 

 E so pus and Rondout catchment areas on the west side. 



On Fishkill and Wappinger creeks there are situated manufac- 

 tories employing Toco people who are greatly alarmed at the 

 prospect of their industries being destroyed. They accordingly 

 went to the legislature of 1904 and secured the passage of an 

 act prohibiting the taking of any of the waters of Dutchess county 

 for the supply of Xew York city. This act was signed, and it 

 is uncertain whether the work of the Xew York Water Supply 

 Commission of 1903 may not be considerably modified in 

 consequence. 



Water supply of Staten Island. The area of Staten Island 

 is 49 square miles, including the salt marsh at its borders. It 

 contained a population in 1900 of 67,021. A considerable pro- 

 portion of this pojmlation is collected in small villages, which 

 as yet have no public water supplies. There are several villages 

 of considerable size, as Pleasant Plains and Prince Bay, which 

 obtain their water from wells. There are also a number of large 

 manufacturing establishments which are without public water 

 for fire protection or general purposes. The village of Tottenhill. 

 at the extreme south of the island, is supplied from a small plant 

 owned by the municipality. 



The present supplies throughout Staten Island are from driven 

 wells. Eighty per cent of the area of Staten Island is stated to 



