Department of Environmental Protection Completes Upgrade of Orchard Beach Pumping Station in the Bronx

New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Carter Strickland announced the completion of a $2.7 million upgrade to the Orchard Beach Pumping Station in the Pelham Bay Park section of the Bronx. Wastewater in New York City is primarily conveyed by gravity through the City's 7,500 miles of sewer lines to 14 facilities where it is treated to federal Clean Water Act standards. However, some neighborhoods, including Orchard Beach and the Pelham Bay Park area, require a pumping station to ensure that the wastewater flows toward the treatment facility and does not back up into homes, businesses, or onto local beaches. The Orchard Beach Pumping Station ensures that up to one million gallons of wastewater produced each day by the comfort station, food service facilities, public pavilion structure, and the parking area at Orchard Beach flows towards the Hunts Point Wastewater Treatment Plant. The upgraded station will also improve health and safety conditions for DEP personnel.

"Collecting and treating the more than 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater produced every day in New York City is essential to protecting public health," said DEP Commissioner Strickland. "Nowhere is this more important than at our city beaches, and I'd like to thank our partners at the Parks Department who have helped us ensure another successful beach season."

The Orchard Beach Pumping Station was originally built in 1970. Rehabilitation work began in July 2011 and included the installation of two 6-inch submersible pumps and new motor and pump control systems. The new pumps can be raised above-ground for regular maintenance, which eliminates the need for more difficult below-grade, confined space entry maintenance. Additionally, as part of the project, over 14,000 square feet of landscaping was installed around the pumping station.

DEP manages New York City's water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of water each day to more than nine million residents, including eight million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 in the upstate watershed. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program, with a planned $14 billion in investments over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. This capital program is responsible for critical projects like City Water Tunnel No. 3; the Staten Island Bluebelt program, an ecologically-sound and cost-effective stormwat er management system; the city's Watershed Protection Program, which protects sensitive lands upstate near the city's reservoirs in order to maintain their high water quality; and the installation of more than 820,000 Automated Meter Reading devices, which will allow customers to track their daily water use, more easily manage their accounts and be alerted to potential leaks on their properties. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/nycwater, or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/nycwater.