September 30, 2019

Pilot program used goats to maintain weeds and invasive species at Glenford Dike

More photos available on DEP’s Flickr page

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) this summer piloted a grazing program that used goats to maintain weeds and invasive species at Ashokan Reservoir. The trial, which finished this week, used a herd of 11 goats at Glenford Dike in West Hurley. The goats gobbled up poison ivy, Japanese knotweed, and other weeds that have grown rampantly over the years. The 2,850-foot-long dike is unique among the structures at Ashokan Reservoir because of a hand-built stone wall that runs atop the dike. That wall has made it difficult to cut and remove the weeds that grow densely along the dike. This trial was the latest DEP effort to examine whether animals can effectively manage water supply lands in a manner that is consistent with protecting water quality. Starting in 2016, DEP deployed sheep at Neversink Dam in Sullivan County and the dam at Rondout Reservoir in Ulster County to manage grassy areas.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than 1 billion gallons of high-quality water each day to more than 9.6 million New Yorkers. This includes more than 70 upstate communities and institutions in Ulster, Orange, Putnam and Westchester counties who consume an average of 110 million total gallons of drinking water daily from New York City’s water supply system. This water comes from the Catskill, Delaware, and Croton watersheds that extend more than 125 miles from the City, and the system comprises 19 reservoirs, three controlled lakes, and numerous tunnels and aqueducts. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 scientists, engineers, surveyors, watershed maintainers and other professionals in the watershed. In addition to its $70 million payroll and $168.9 million in annual taxes paid in upstate counties, DEP has invested more than $1.7 billion in watershed protection programs—including partnership organizations such as the Catskill Watershed Corporation and the Watershed Agricultural Council—that support sustainable farming practices, environmentally sensitive economic development, and local economic opportunity. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program with $20.1 billion in investments planned over the next decade that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.