What kind of water is in the East River in NYC?

Since it is mostly salt water that flows through the East River, it is not technically a river, but a tidal estuary. Because of its varying degrees of salinity, the river is able to support a very diverse fish population.



Despite its name, the East River in New York City is not a river at all, but a saltwater tidal strait or estuary. It is a 16-mile-long (26 km) body of water that connects Upper New York Bay at its southern end to the Long Island Sound at its northern end. Because it connects two larger bodies of salt water, it does not have a single flow direction; instead, the water's direction and speed change based on the tides, often creating powerful and turbulent currents. The salinity of the water is nearly identical to that of the ocean, although it can be slightly diluted by runoff. Historically, it has been a center of maritime activity, though it is famously categorized as "Class I" water by the NYC Department of Environmental Protection, meaning it is considered safe for "secondary contact" like boating and fishing but not for swimming due to legacy pollution and combined sewer overflows. Efforts in 2026 continue to improve its ecology, but its identity remains that of a complex, urban tidal strait rather than a freshwater river.

People Also Ask

Thanks to reductions in pollution, cleanups, the restriction of development, and other environmental controls, the East River along Manhattan is one of the areas of New York's waterways – including the Hudson-Raritan Estuary and both shores of Long Island – which have shown signs of the return of biodiversity.

MORE DETAILS

Almost anywhere along this 1.5-mile shorefront park, you can fish for striped bass, flounder, black sea bass, oyster toadfish, and even eels.

MORE DETAILS

For about half its length, the Hudson is actually a tidal estuary, where salt water from the ocean combines with fresh water from northern tributaries. The Hudson is tidal from the mouth of the Hudson in New York Harbor to the Federal Dam in Troy, a distance of about 153 miles.

MORE DETAILS

The East River Greenway (also called the East River Esplanade) is an approximately 9.44-mile-long (15.19 km) foreshoreway for walking or cycling on the east side of the island of Manhattan on the East River. It is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway.

MORE DETAILS

Surrounded by water, New York City has a number of official swimming beaches that are easy to get to. Coney Island and Staten Island ocean beaches are old favourites with locals. These beaches are some of the first places where new Americans had the chance to dip their feet in the water.

MORE DETAILS

Enterococcus (“Entero”) is a fecal indicating bacterium that lives in the intestines of humans and other warm-blooded animals.

MORE DETAILS

NEW YORK -- The body of 13-year-old Kavion Brown Godfrey was pulled from the East River on Friday, the family's attorney tells CBS New York. Divers pulled his body from the water at Pier 16.

MORE DETAILS

While there are orange individuals in the Hudson, these tend to be easy pickings for predators; one study of the diet of ospreys along the Hudson found that goldfish were a common prey of this fish-eating hawk. Thus the goldfish we catch are more likely to be olive green or brown than orange or gold.

MORE DETAILS

Crabs, turtles and many types of fish can be found along the whole length of the river. Near the sea, even starfish, lobsters and sea horses can be found!

MORE DETAILS

New York Harbor, which is a tidally influenced estuary, subject to the mixing of salt water from the ocean with fresh water primarily from the Hudson River. It is divided at the Verrazano Narrows into Upper and Lower New York Bays.

MORE DETAILS