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Great Lakes Water Withdrawal & Registration

Great Lakes Drainage Basins in New York State

In 1989 the Legislature passed the Great Lakes Water Conservation and Management Act. The Act places certain requirements on the public who withdraw large amounts of Great Lakes Basin water.

These pages provide guidance on the Great Lakes Water Registration Program. Specifically, they tell who must register, how to register and how to compute water withdrawals and losses. For convenience in calculating the threshold figure of 100,000 gallons per day averaged over a consecutive 30-day period, it can be converted to 3 million gallons during a consecutive 30-day period.

New Water Resources Law

A new law will go into effect on February 15, 2012.

Water Users Who Must Register

Any person who withdraws more than 3 million gallons of surface or ground water during a consecutive 30-day period from the Great Lakes Basin.

Water Users Who Do Not Have to Register

  • Any person who uses less than 3 million gallons of water during a 30-day period.
  • Water Suppliers who have a valid DEC water supply permit.
  • Any person who has a valid hydroelectric generation license from the Federal Energy Regulating Commission (FERC).
  • Any person who has a valid DEC water-lifting permit.

Nonagricultural Withdrawals versus Agricultural Withdrawals

  • Nonagricultural Withdrawals - All existing water nonagricultural water withdrawals should have been registered by April 1, 1991. Renewals must be made every two years thereafter. If water withdrawal records are not available for the initial registration of an existing water withdrawal, accurate estimates may be used for as much of the previous two years as possible. Subsequent registration information must be based on accurate records of water withdrawal
  • Agricultural Withdrawals - Agricultural withdrawals must be registered by December 31st of the same year in which the water withdrawal exceeded 100,000 gallons per day averaged over a consecutive 30-day period.

NOTE: The recently enacted Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (ECL 21-1001) prohibits the transfer of water out of the Great Lakes Basin in any container greater than 5.7 gallons (the size of a typical water cooler jug). However, the Compact does allow for the consideration of limited exceptions for public water supply transfers. Proposed consumptive uses in excess of 5 million gallons per day will require advance consultation with the other Great Lakes States and Canadian Provinces.

How to Register

A photo of Lake Erie in fall
Lake Erie

For each withdrawal, a Water Registration Form (see Registration Forms page) must be completed and submitted with a registration fee to DEC. For nonagricultural users, a $200 fee is required for biennial (every two years) registrations. A $100 fee is required for annual registrations of agricultural withdrawals. Forms and fees must be sent to the address below.

NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
Bureau of Water Resource Management, 4th Floor
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-3508

Phone: (518) 402-8182

If your withdrawal has already been registered, you will be sent a reminder letter and information before your current registration expires.

Reporting Annual Water Withdrawal Amounts

The Water Withdrawal Reporting Form has been recently updated and is now due for submittal by February 1st of each year for the previous year's data. It is requested that the form be submitted electronically whenever possible. This is accomplished by completing it online and submitting it by clicking the "Send by Email" button at the bottom of the form.


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