Case Study: A Walk In The Park

Once very scenic and beautiful, Van Cortlandt Park had the misfortune of being located adjacent to an area where several major New York City highways were subsequently built. Trash, debris, salt, sand and other runoff from these highways nearly choked the lake and resulted in a reduction in depth from an original 13 feet to just over 2 feet, which is not enough to support aquatic life. The pollutants also created potential noncompliance problems with the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Water Act of 1976. In an effort to restore the lake to its original beauty and to comply with EPA's regulations, city engineers decided to dredge the lake and install a stormwater treatment system to handle the runoff from the highways