Black River (New York)

Catchment area of ​​the Black River

Black River Falls in Watertown, New York

The Black River ( English for " Black River ") is a tributary of Lake Ontario in the northwest of the State of New York.

Origin of the name

The Black River is a so-called black water river. The origin of the river name is not clear, but is probably due to the tannic acid, which makes the water of the river in places, very dark.

River

The river has its origin in the North Lake in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains in the north of the state. It flows initially in a westerly direction, then turns but when you leave the Kayuta Lake to the north. It flows through following the Forestport reservoir and flows about 3 km west past Boonville. The river passes through the places Forestport, Hawkinsville and Port Leyden. In Lyons Falls of Moose River from the right leads into the river. Then the Black River passes through the town of Glenfield and flows east past Lowville. Shortly thereafter, the Beaver River meets the right side of the river. After flowing through the Carthage of the Black River performs an arc to the west. The military base Fort Drum is located on the north bank of the river. The following are the places Great Bend and Black River. The Black River flows through the city Watertown and shortly thereafter Brownsville. A few miles to Dexter the Black River reaches Lake Ontario and empties into the Black River Bay.

Hydropower plants

At the Black River there are several hydroelectric plants. 10 plants are below Carthage, of which 6 are operated by Brookfield.

A selection of water turbines at Black River ( in downflow direction):

Leisure

The river is suitable for fishing. To occur in the river fish species include trout, salmon, perch and pike.

Some stretches of river are with rafting and kayak athletes as popular white water, in particular the Black River Gorge, where a sufficient amount of water is also available during the summer months.

Environmental problem

After the 10th August 2005, the river was contaminated by a leak in a waste water retention basin of animal fattening farm near Lowville, which reached approximately 30,000 cubic meters of contaminated wastewater into the river. By 250,000 fish were killed, according to estimates.