New York will shut off half of its water supply this winter

New York City will close a key aqueduct this winter that supplies nearly half of the city’s water supply.

The shutdown is part of a $2 billion project aimed at fixing significant leaks beneath the Hudson River.

The temporary closure of the Delaware Aqueduct in New York State has been planned for years.

To prepare, city officials have gradually increased capacity from other parts of the city’s 19-reservoir water system.

Water will continue to flow through New York City’s taps during the shutdown, but its taste could change as the city relies more heavily on alternative water sources.

“The water will always be there,” said Paul Rush, deputy commissioner of the city’s Department of Environmental Protection. “We will be changing the mix of water that consumers receive.”

The Delaware Aqueduct is the longest tunnel in the world, stretching 85 miles from four reservoirs in the Catskill region to other reservoirs in the northern suburbs of New York City.

In operation since 1944, it supplies about half of the city’s daily water use (1.1 billion gallons) and serves over 8 million residents as well as some upstate communities.

However, the aqueduct leaks up to 35 million gallons of water per day, mostly from a section deep beneath the Hudson River.

City officials have known about the leak for decades but have been unable to decommission the critical aqueduct for lengthy repairs.

To solve this problem, a parallel 2.5-mile (4-kilometer) bypass tunnel was built under the Hudson River over the last decade.

During the decommissioning, which is expected to last up to eight months, the new tunnel will be connected to the aqueduct.

While more than 40 miles of the aqueduct from the upstate reservoirs will be out of service during this period, a section closer to the city will remain in service.

Repairs to other leaks further north in the aqueduct are also planned in the coming months.

Rush emphasized that the timing of the work was carefully chosen to avoid the summer months when water demand is highest.

The city has also spent years improving other parts of the water system, some of which are more than a century old.

“There’s a lot of thought going on about where the alternative supply is going to come from,” Rush said.

The Catskill Aqueduct’s capacity has been increased to compensate for the closure, and more drinking water is now drawn from the Croton Watershed’s 12 reservoirs and three lakes in the city’s northern suburbs.

This shift could slightly change the taste of the city’s water due to the higher abundance of minerals and algae in the Croton system.

“While some residents may notice a temporary, subtle difference in taste or aroma during repairs, changes in taste do not mean there is something wrong with the water,” DEP Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala said in a statement.

“Just as different brands of bottled water taste a little different, our different reservoirs taste a little different.”

This article contains reporting from The Associated Press