Economic Value of the Delaware River Basin

Socioeconomic Value of the Delaware River Basin in Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania

What do the Guggenheim Museum, New York Yankees, Boeing, Sunoco, Campbell’s Soup, DuPont, Wawa, Starbucks, Iron Hill Brewery, Philadelphia Phillies, Camelback Ski Area, Pt. Pleasant Canoe Livery, Salem Nuclear Power Plant, and United States Navy all have in common? They all depend on the waters of the Delaware River Basin to sustain their businesses. The Delaware River Basin is an economic engine that supplies drinking water to the 1st (New York City) and 7^th (Philadelphia) largest metropolitan economies in the United States and supports the largest freshwater port in the world. The Delaware Basin’s water supplies, natural resources, and ecosystems in Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and a small sliver of MarylanC:

• Contribute $25 billion in annual economic activity from recreation, water quality, water supply, hunting/fishing, ecotourism, forest, agriculture, open space, potential Marcellus Shale natural gas, and port benefits.
• Provide ecosystem goods and services (natural capital) of $21 billion per year in 2010 dollars with net present value (NPV) of $683 billion discounted over 100 years.
• Are directly/indirectly responsible for 600,000 jobs with $10 billion in annual wages.

Related Resources

• Economic Value of the Delaware River Basin, Common Waters Natural Economies Workshop, Matamoras, Pa. (2013)
• “Socioeconomic Value of the Delaware River Basin in DE, NJ, NY & PA” prepared by Gerald Kauffman, Univ. of Del. (2011)
• “Socioeconomic Value of the DRB” Exec. Summary (2011)
• “The DRB: The Economic Engine of the Delaware Valley” Pres. by G. Kauffman at 10/19/11 Delaware River Celebration (2011)