A long-awaited environmental restoration study for the Harlem River is officially moving forward, following the Friday announcement of a $1 million funding agreement between the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and federal partners.
The study, which will be led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), aims to examine options for restoring the river’s natural habitats, improving water quality, flood resiliency and expanding public waterfront access. New York City committed $500,000 to the effort, matching federal funds secured by U.S. Representatives Ritchie Torres and Adriano Espaillat through congressional appropriations.
“Restoring the Harlem River is not just an environmental imperative — it’s an opportunity to reconnect communities with their waterfront, improve public health, and build resilience against climate change,” said Mayor Eric Adams.
The city’s commitment to fund the project comes on the heels of local environmentalists and representatives warning City Hall that without securing matching funds, the project risked losing its federal funding altogether.
The Harlem River separating Manhattan and the Bronx may be the closest body of water to many Bronx residents, but advocates for the river say that it is largely unusable to the public. Once teeming with wetlands, tributaries, and natural shorelines, the river is now largely confined by hardened embankments. Heavy industrialization and unchecked development have contributed to degraded water and sediment quality, increased flooding risk, and poor public access — especially in the economically disadvantaged neighborhoods surrounding the waterway.
Espaillat said that funding the study prioritized the health and quality of life for residents in historically disinvested communities.
“This critical analysis of the Harlem River will ensure that our shared efforts to revive and restore the waterway and surrounding area remain on a strong trajectory,” said Rep. Espaillat. “For too long, the communities of Upper Manhattan and the Bronx have been a depository for the flow of harmful materials and an afterthought in remediation and resilience efforts.”
Environmental activists have been making waves over water quality and excessive pollution in the Harlem River. The city has launched more than 20 green infrastructure initiatives within the Harlem River watershed including a massive project to reroute long buried brook that was once diverted into the sewage system contributing to toxic spillage.
But advocates have pointed out a disconnect, slamming elected officials and city and state environmental administrators over key commitments where they argue the city and state is coming up short. Last month the Adams administration seemed poised to let federal funding for the Harlem River Environmental Restoration Study expire, prompting Rep. Torres, Espaillat and five other Bronx democrats to pen a letter to the mayor and the head of the DEP.
Torres celebrated the decision to fully fund the study.
“The Harlem River has long suffered from environmental neglect and disinvestment, but today’s commitment from the NYC Department of Environmental Protection marks a crucial turning point,” said Rep. Torres. “By pledging the $500k local match and moving forward with the feasibility study alongside the Army Corps, the City is taking a critical first step toward restoring this vital waterway for the Bronx and Upper Manhattan.”
