All About the New York Water Resources Institute

The New York Water Resources Institute is located at Cornell University in New York. It is a program that is helping locally, regionally, and even nationally in some cases to help people understand the importance of water, specifically clean water, as a resource.

One of the issues that the NYWRI is tackling right now is the acid in lakes. Acid in the water happens when it is raining or snowing as well as through different gasses and aerosols. It is mostly because of pollution in the atmosphere from vehicles and power plants. Because of the bigger population in New York, there is a lot more acid in the water that falls than in many other parts of the country, which is why the NYWRI is such an important research tool for resources such as water. New York actually has almost thirty times the amount of acid in their precipitation than normal.

Because there is so much nitrogen in the acid, problems are beginning to occur in New York where fresh water and salt water meet. There need to get a certain level of essential nutrients that combine to make this meeting a happy one. But because there is so much nitrogen in the water, there is simply not enough dissolved oxygen in all the different bodies of water. Many of them have been said to have a sufficient amount, but without action that could change very easily and many of the natural resources, like fish and wild life habitat could begin to disappear.

Another problem with the nitrogen is coming from the famer's fertilizer that is somehow escaping down into the land and contaminating bigger bodies of water, causing more algae to grow and allowing for less oxygen for the animals and plants. Laws on the fertilizers put into the ground have become harsher but there is not always a way to stop one hundred percent of the run offs that occur through the ground. These runoffs, if unchecked, could completely destroy any change of restoration or preservation of natural resources.

The NYWRI has many different programs in place to help to keep the water healthy, however many of the funds for the projects are running out. In 1972 there was a Clean Water Act passed that gave unlimited funds to many of these projects. The time allotted to these projects, however, is slowly coming to an end. Without renewed legislation and help from the communities throughout New York, it may be impossible for all of the programs to continue working, and the research in progress to be completely finished and the resources completely restored.

Several of the ways that the researchers are trying to reach out to the community include workshops in which people will be able to see all of the different water resources and water problems within New York and be able to see how they could be making a negative impact on the environment, as well as how they can contain their impact. The institute is also having several conferences a year that invite public donations as well as questions and concerns.

Beth Olignerf writes for homeowners. Additional information available at:
http://www.localwaterremoval.com/New_York