of structures wherever possible. Due to funding limitations and the perception that historic infrastructural elements are defunct, preservation would be the first course of action. According to the Standards, preservation is defined as “the act or process of applying measures to sustain the existing from, integrity, and materials of an historic property.”5 This initial stage identifies, retains, and preserves historic features and materials. Therefore, active campaigns to stabilize the structures of the Croton Waterworks would feature ongoing maintenance and repair of exterior and interior systems. Those involved Section 3: Preservation document as the Croton Waterworks. This evaluation would consider the entire system, and the level of documentation for each individual element will be based on the level of significance we have established for it. For instance, structures with a high level of significance might be drawn, while those with a lower level of significance may only be documented through photography. While documentation by HAER would be an ideal situation, documentation may be conducted by trained stakeholders for their archival purposes. In the latter case, we encourage following the above-mentioned guidelines, perhaps through a standard/criteria/survey form, and recommend that documentation be housed in a location accessible to all, for instance, online. The bank of knowledge provided by documentation would allow interested parties, within and without the preservation community, access to information about the Croton Waterworks’ significance and current state. Due to the nature of active infrastructure sites, documentation may be the only way researchers would be able to learn more about certain aspects of the Waterworks that are closed to the public for security reasons. While the following stages in our preservation plan will actively seek to mitigate deterioration and neglect, documentation can provide a valuable and lasting record of how the Croton Waterworks looked, worked, and related to its surrounding landscape at a particular period in time. 49 Proposed Designations Though many designations already exist that encompass both individual structures as well as larger, more continuous portions of the Croton Waterworks, a more comprehensive protective document is necessary. Currently, individual structures designated by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and the National Park Service only represent roughly 4 percent of the entire built system. Even taking into consideration what has been lost due to demolition, total representation by individual landmarks and historic sites is staggeringly low, especially in Manhattan. It is imperative for the continued protection and maintained integrity of the waterworks to include what has subsequently been left out in Manhattan, as well as what comprises the New Croton System. The most far-reaching of the existing Croton designations was the National Register of Historic Places of 1974, which encompasses most of the Westchester County portion of the Old Croton Aqueduct. However, this designation falls short of taking the entire system into consideration. Later, in 1992, the National Register designation was amended to designate the Old Croton Aqueduct as a National Historic Landmark. This amendment introduced the submerged portions between the Old and New Croton Dams, as well as the Aqueduct beginning in the Bronx and ending on the Manhattan end of the High Bridge, into its designation. Though this was a step in the right direction, it still fails to take into consideration those portions of the Aqueduct that continue into Manhattan. We propose that the designation consider the system holistically, and be amended to include all the Croton structures in Manhattan. Other proposed designations include nominating the Croton Waterworks as a National Heritage Area (NHA), an important federal designation granted by Congress. An NHA can span large geographical areas and enlists local community members along the designated span in preservation efforts. This designation option has proven successful for several other infrastructural systems, such as the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, and may be a novel approach to preserving the Croton system. While a NHA does not provide legal “teeth,” the entire system would be recognized within it various contexts, including the development of communities along its path and neighboring historic sites. This designation would also provide the Croton system with limited financial and administrative assistance for the execution of management and preservation plans. We also encourage designation of the Croton Waterworks as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Four of the world’s aqueducts already join this venerable list of sites, and we believe that the Croton Waterworks matches those other sites in national- and worldwidelevel historical, engineering, architectural, and cultural value. While this designation also does not have legal “teeth,” a comprehensive management plan is required for designation, and the production of this document would be an important undertaking for the entire Croton Waterworks. Lastly, in order to further protect the Croton Waterworks, and historic infrastructure more broadly, we call for the first meeting of a Croton Congress, in order to construct the “Croton Declaration of Principles and