Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
| Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area | |
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IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
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Silver Thread Falls, the smaller waterfall at the Dingman's Falls site is located near Dingman's Ferry, Pennsylvania.
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| Location | New Jersey & Pennsylvania, United States |
| Nearest city |
Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, Port Jervis, New York |
| Coordinates | 41°09′14″N 74°54′50″W / 41.15381°N 74.91388°WCoordinates: 41°09′14″N 74°54′50″W / 41.15381°N 74.91388°W |
| Area | 66,741 acres (270.09 km2) |
| Established | September 1, 1965 |
| Visitors | 4,986,700 (in 2011) |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
| Website | Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area |
The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is a 70,000 acres (28,000 ha) protected area designated a National Recreation Area administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service. It is located along the middle section of the Delaware River in New Jersey and Pennsylvania stretching from the Delaware Water Gap northward in New Jersey to the state line near Port Jervis, New York, and in Pennsylvania to the outskirts of Milford. A 40-mile (64 km) section of the Delaware River, entirely within the National Recreation Area, has been granted protected status as the Middle Delaware National Scenic River under the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and is also administered by the National Park Service. This section of the river is the core of the historical Minisink region.
The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was established in 1978 after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers transferred condemned lands along the Delaware River to the National Park Service. It scuttled to build a hydroelectric dam and reservoir along the Delaware near , approximately 6 miles north of the Delaware Water Gap. This project would have established a large lake 37-mile (60 km) long after flooding the valley. The surrounding land was to be organized as the Tocks Island National Recreation Area. These plans encountered substantial resistance from environmental activists, embittered residents displaced after their property was confiscated by eminent domain, and later by political figures. After the costly Vietnam War, government appropriations for the project dwindled in the face of opposition. In addition, a geological safety assessment revealed the dam would be built too close to nearby active fault lines.
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