Area Map & Photos - Upper New York Bay

Choose the Cameras Along the Water Body Project Area of Alley Creek
and Little Neck Bay to VIEW PHOTOS in a seperate browser window.

Upper Bay Photos I 1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 I 6 I 7 I

The Upper Bay extends from the Battery in lower Manhattan to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in the south and is generally bounded by Staten Island and New Jersey to the south and west, respectively, Manhattan to the north and Brooklyn to the west. Within the Upper Bay are several islands including Governors Island, Liberty Island and Ellis Island. Major tributaries include the Hudson River, the East River, Gowanus Canal and the Kill Van Kull. The Upper Bay enters the Lower Bay at the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge which continues out to the Atlantic Ocean. The Upper Bay lies within an area that has been substantially developed. The Upper Bay is dominated by a variety of water-dependent and non-water dependent industrial uses, commercial uses and residential areas. In addition, the Upper Bay also serves as a major navigational area with several federally designated anchorage areas within the periphery of the harbor. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) also maintains several major navigation channels that traverse the Upper Bay providing access primarily to the Hudson and East Rivers to the north and the Kill Van Kull and Port Newark/Elizabeth within Newark Bay to the west. Major navigational channels within the Upper Bay include Anchorage Channel, the major channel within the bay; Buttermilk Channel located to the east of Governors Island; and Red Hook Channel located along the northern portion of the bay. It receives CSO discharges from both the Owls Head Water Pollution Control Plant (WPCP) and Red Hook WPCP drainage areas located in Brooklyn. CSOs are also received from Staten Island and from Manhattan. The Upper Bay accommodates a substantial volume of commercial maritime traffic including passenger ferries, oil tankers, container and cargo vessels and tugboat and barge operations. New York State has classified the Upper Bay as a Class I waterbody with a best use identified as secondary contact recreation and fishing. These waters shall be suitable for fish propagation and survival. In addition, the Upper Bay is a New York State 303(d) listed waterbody with priority organics identified as the parameter of concern and the potential source of impairment listed as contaminated sediments. The Upper Bay is not targeted for TMDL development before 2005. Major tributaries and/or associated waterbodies to the Upper Bay include Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, the East River, the Hudson River and the Kill Van Kull which is located adjacent to northern Staten Island. These waterbodies are being evaluated independently and as a result are not discussed within this summary.