EPA to Finalize Rules to Improve Delaware River Water Quality

April 4, 2025 | njspotlightnews.org

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said that it would finalize a rule revising water quality standards for that section of the river, which has suffered from a so-called oxygen sag, or a depletion of dissolved oxygen, which is vital for the propagation of fish, particularly the endangered Atlantic sturgeon.

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NJ SEED: The 282 mile long Delaware River is the longest free flowing river in the eastern US. In 2000, Congress designated the Lower Delaware (the section bordered by NJ’s Warren, Hunterdon and Mercer Counties) a Wild and Scenic River. The part of the river that flows roughly from Camden to the Delaware Bay is so depleted in dissolved oxygen that marine life is seriously endangered. The pollution is caused mainly by discharges from wastewater treatment plants. If these facilities were substantially privately owned the fines and court ordered cleanups would be ubiquitous.