The consent decree requires construction of two projects in addition to the cover, the Kensico Eastview Connection (KEC) and the Hillview Reservoir Improvements (HRI). The HRI project will be conducted concurrently with the KEC. Following the completion of the KEC and the HRI, the East Basin cover will be constructed, with expected commencement of full operation in 2042, and then the West Basin cover will be constructed, with expected commencement of full operation in 2049. The City's estimate in 2009 for the cost of its then planned concrete cover for the 90-acre Reservoir was $1.6 billion. Until the cover is in operation, the consent decree also requires the City to implement Interim Measures to help protect the water, including enhanced wildlife management at the Reservoir and Reservoir monitoring. In addition, under the consent decree, the City will pay the United States a civil penalty of $1 million for its past violations of federal requirements. The consent decree also provides that the City will pay New York State $50,000, and implement a state Water Quality Benefit Project in the amount of $200,000, to settle the State's claim for penalties for violations of a state administrative order.
At the time that the Consent Judgment (CJ) was entered, in May 2019, NYC believed that a new hydraulic interconnection between the Hillview Reservoir and City Tunnels No. 2 and 3 (the East Basin Interconnection (EBI)) should be included in the Hillview Reservoir (HRI) schedule of