60th Anniversary Timeline

The DRBC approves its first Comprehensive Plan, including Tocks Island and 11 other dams.

James F. Wright is appointed DRBC’s first executive director.

Record-setting drought tightens its grip on the Basin, causing low water levels. The drought lasts from 1961 - 1967.

The DRBC declares a water supply emergency and plays a pivotal role in negotiating emergency water allocations out of court. New York City's Cannonsville Reservoir becomes operational.

The ​​DRBC publishes its first Delaware River recreation maps, which are updated in 1979, 1991, and 2007.

The Delaware Estuary Water Quality Monitoring Program (AKA the Boat Run) is established, a collaboration with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Today, this program is one of the longest, continuously running in the world.

The DRBC adopts broad regulations to implement water quality standards for the Delaware Estuary that include an innovative wasteload allocation component. Former Interior Department head Stewart Udall remarks, "Only the Delaware among the nation’s river basins is moving into high gear in its program to combat water pollution."

Congress passes the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to preserve rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free-flowing condition for the enjoyment of present and future generations.



As part of a nationwide environmental movement, the first Earth Week was held April 16-22, with Earth Day officially observed on April 22. Over the next several years, departments of environmental protection and conservation are established by the federal government and each of the Basin states.



The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completes construction of the Beltzville Reservoir at the headwaters of the Lehigh River, with the DRBC as a local sponsor responsible for financing and directing use of a portion of the reservoir's storage capacity.

Congress passes the Clean Water Act, consisting of extensive amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act that include, among other things, a nationwide program for regulation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of pollutant discharges.

The DRBC adopts regulations requiring metering of customer connections to new, major water supply systems.

Congress passes the Safe Drinking Water Act and authorizes EPA to set national health-based standards for public drinking water supplies.

A proposal to construct the Tocks Island Dam across the main stem Delaware River is defeated by vote of the DRBC Commissioners. The site became the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

New DRBC regulations restrict development in the 100-year floodplain and prohibit development in the floodway.

Gerald M. Hansler is sworn in as the Commission's second executive director.

Two reaches of the non-tidal Delaware River known as the "Upper" and "Middle" Delaware, totaling over 100 miles, are added to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completes construction of the Blue Marsh Reservoir on the Tulpehocken Creek, a tributary to the Schuylkill River, with the DRBC as a local sponsor responsible for financing and directing use of a portion of the reservoir's capacity. The multi-purpose dam supports flood control, water supply, water quality, and recreation.

At Pennsylvania's request, DRBC establishes the Southeastern Pennsylvania Groundwater Protected Area to address over-pumping of groundwater as a result of rapid development in this region. The program limits groundwater withdrawals and encourages conjunctive use of surface and groundwater sources.

Lambertville, N.J. holds its first annual festival to celebrate the return of American shad to the Delaware River.

Through coordination by the DRBC, the parties to the Supreme Court litigation over allocation of the Basin's waters reach the historic Good Faith Agreement. The Agreement establishes recommendations that include reductions in flow targets, diversions and releases to conserve water during periods of low flow and drought, and identify additional storage projects to meet projected future demand in the absence of a main stem dam.

The Clean Water Act Amendments of 1987 establish the National Estuary Program to develop and implement conservation and management plans for protecting estuaries and restoring and maintaining their chemical, physical, and biological integrity, as well as controlling point and nonpoint pollution sources. Under new Section 320 of the CWA, states may nominate or the EPA may identify estuaries of national significance and convene a management conference for that estuary.

The Delaware Estuary joins the National Estuary Program.

After DRBC identifies the need for additional storage to ensure access to cooling water and preserve minimum streamflows during drought, a group of power generators completes construction of Merrill Creek Reservoir. During drought conditions in the lower Delaware Basin, the project provides water for electric generating utilities, helping them avoid cutbacks.

The DRBC adopts Special Protection Waters regulations to protect the exceptionally high water quality of the Upper and Middle Delaware Scenic and Recreational Rivers.

The DRBC and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers collaborate on flood forecast mapping for 65 miles of the Delaware River north of Trenton.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completes a DRBC-sponsored project to address flooding on the Delaware River at Port Jervis, NY, in response to devastating "ice jam" flooding in 1981.

The DRBC adopts regulations governing the discharge of toxic pollutants, including metals and pesticides, from wastewater treatment plants to the tidal Delaware River.

The Delaware River Sojourn—a paddling, camping  and learning trip—is held for the third time. The DRBC continues to support this annual tradition.

Carol R. Collier is sworn in as the Commission's third executive director, becoming the first woman to head an interstate-federal compact agency.

Governors of the four Basin states sign the “Resolution on the Protection of the Delaware River Basin” and call for the development of a new comprehensive water resources plan for the Basin.

The non-tidal section of the main stem known as the Lower Delaware is added to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Wild and Scenic Rivers protection now covers 75% of the non-tidal Delaware River. Tributaries already in the System include White Clay Creek and Maurice River; the Musconetcong River is added in 2006.

The DRBC approves its second Comprehensive Plan.

The DRBC declares a basinwide drought emergency for the third time since 1980, and combined storage in the three New York City Delaware reservoirs drops to a record-low level. This emergency will remain in effect through 2002.

Philadelphia Water Department partners with DRBC, Pennsylvania DEP and others to launch an Early Warning System—a monitoring, communication and notification system for potential water quality events—to water suppliers and industrial intake operators in the Schuylkill and Delaware River watersheds.

Pollution limits known as Total Maximum Daily Loads, or TMDLs, are established for PCBs for the first time in tidal portions of the Delaware River.

The DRBC publishes its first Water Resources Plan for the Delaware River Basin, a 30-year framework for governmental and non-governmental stakeholders whose actions affect water resources in the Delaware River Basin.

A Pollution Minimization Program is launched, helping the regulated community achieve a 76% reduction in PCBs by 2016.

On behalf of Delaware and New Jersey, and based on work conducted by the DRBC, U.S. EPA establishes a TMDL for PCBs in the Delaware Bay. This TMDL was built upon the TMDLs developed in 2003 for the 85-mile tidal section of the Delaware River.

The Interstate Flood Mitigation Task Force, convened at the request of Basin-state governors after three devastating mainstem floods in 2004, 2005 and 2006, completes work and recommends a more proactive, sustainable, and systematic approach to flood damage reduction.

The DRBC permanently designates 76 miles of the Lower Delaware as Significant Resource Waters under DRBC's Special Protection Waters program, a major step toward "keeping the clean water clean." The antidegradation regulations now include the entire non-tidal Delaware River.

In response to 150 million gallons per day of water lost in the Basin, DRBC institutes an innovative water efficiency program to identify and control water loss. This new "water audit" approach will improve water supply efficiency and enhance the Commission's water conservation program.

The DRBC updates water quality criteria for human health and aquatic life for toxic pollutants in the Delaware Estuary and extends the criteria to include Delaware Bay.

The Delaware River is designated Pennsylvania's "River of the Year" by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Commonwealth also honored the Delaware as River of the Year in 2002.

Steven J. Tambini takes the oath of office as the Commission's fourth executive director.

The DRBC's One Process/One Permit Program goes into effect.

Delaware River Basin Conservation Act is passed by Congress.

The DRBC approves a resolution kicking off a formal review of designated aquatic life uses in the Delaware River Estuary and water quality criteria necessary to support these uses.

The states of Delaware and New Jersey relax fish consumption advisories for their shared waters of the Delaware Estuary and Delaware Bay as a result of improvements in PCBs and other legacy pollutants, through the cooperative efforts of DRBC and state environmental agencies.

The DRBC issues its latest State of the Basin Report and launches Our Shared Waters. Together, these programs increase transparency into current conditions, provide a platform to measure progress, and enable DRBC to connect to communities.

Environmental advocacy group American Rivers names the Delaware its "River of the Year."

The DRBC votes to prohibit high volume hydraulic fracturing within the Delaware River Basin. The Commissioners also agree to propose rules for importing and exporting basin waters in connection with the practice.