The Delaware River, which provides drinking water to millions of people in Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York, is facing a growing problem. Due to ongoing droughts and rising sea levels, saltwater is pushing further upstream, threatening the freshwater supply.
To fight this, officials are releasing water from reservoirs to prevent saltwater from contaminating the river, according to ABC7NY.
Desalination, a process that could remove salt from the water, is not a great option because it requires a lot of energy and creates waste disposal issues.
Despite this, there is increasing pressure to explore this solution as the saltwater is getting dangerously close to the water intakes, just 18 miles away. Amy Shallcross, a water resource expert, explained that while it’s a tough and expensive challenge, action is urgent.
Efforts to monitor and control the situation are focused near Trenton, the furthest point of saltwater impact. Officials are trying to manage river flows in a way that keeps the salt out, which is a tricky task requiring the release of enough water to fill two Olympic-sized swimming pools every minute.
The saltwater issue is not just happening in the Delaware River—other rivers like the Mississippi are also facing similar problems. Human activities, such as dredging the riverbed for navigation, have worsened the situation. This highlights how vulnerable our freshwater systems are, as noted by ABC News.
With not enough rainfall to fix the problem, the Delaware River Basin Commission is already planning for future solutions and considering the impacts of climate change.
Shallcross mentioned that stricter conservation measures may be needed as we rethink how we use and manage water resources.