Representatives of key stakeholders in the Upper Delaware River corridor discussed ways to responsibly manage tourism growth during a roundtable meeting in Narrowsburg, New York, on Sept. 14.
Sherri Thomas, deputy director of Friends of Upper Delaware River, noted the growing number of tourists in the past few years and increased pressure on limited public access points.
“The upper part of the river has become a lot more crowded, and there is a lot more competition for water usage—fly fishing, trout fishing, kayaking, and paddleboarding,” she said.
After noting the same trend, Dan Corrigan, owner of Northeast Wilderness Experience, said his company has been educating customers about responsible river recreation, including leaving no garbage behind, sharing water resources with others, and respecting private property.
Most land within the Upper Delaware River corridor remains in private hands. Covering 73 miles of river along the New York–Pennsylvania border, the corridor runs from the town of Hancock down to Sparrow Bush in the Town of Deerpark.
Ingrid Peterec, chief of interpretation at the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River division of the National Park Service, said that the number of Hispanic visitors to the corridor has risen in past years and that her agency just hired two seasonal Hispanic-speaking staffers.
“[They] reached out to these groups to provide them with safety information and other information on how to respect the river,” she said.
The No. 1 river safety rule is to wear a life jacket, Peterec said.
Lindsey Kurnath, superintendent of the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River division of the National Park Service, said that proposals have been made to study the amounts of sunscreen and microplastics left behind by tourists and their impact on water quality.
Several attendees said proper tourism and environmental management will enhance the river’s economic benefits in the long run, because no one enjoys a polluted river.
Roundtable attendees also discussed the role of volunteers in river protection, ways to further tourism growth, and campground development trends in the corridor.
“The purpose of today is to continue to build upon the relationships that we have with folks in the upper basin and get everyone together to share perspectives,” said Kristen Kavanagh, deputy executive director of the Delaware River Basin Commission and organizer of the roundtable.
Created by Congress in 1961, the Delaware River Basin Commission is a federal-interstate government agency where four states and the federal government act as equal partners in river basin planning, development, and regulation. Its five commission members are governors of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania and the commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ North Atlantic Division.
Other attendees included Alex Horton, a representative of Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-N.Y.); Upper Delaware Council Executive Director Laurie Ramie; Jeff Dexter, the Damascus Township representative; Christine Martin, the Town of Highland representative; Sullivan County Legislator Matt McPhillips; Heather Jacksy, Sullivan County’s planning director; and Delaware County planner Theresa Ferrigno.
