Endangered New Jersey: NJ Meadowlands Environment Center

Sunday, May 3, 2009

NJ Meadowlands Environment Center

The Meadowlands Environment Center (MEC) is a New Jersey Meadowlands Commission facility operated by Ramapo College of New Jersey.

The MEC offers public programs for all ages, special programs for educators and scouts and MarshAccess programs for people with disabilities. MEC has hands on educational programs for grades K-12 that can introduce students to a variety of topics while satisfying the NJ Core Curriculum Standards.

It's a great place to discover exactly what is a wetland. Wetlands are lands that are flooded or saturated at or near the ground surface for varying periods of time during the year. Wet habitats generally occur between uplands and deepwater. Based on their characteristics wetlands are further defined as marshes, swamps, bogs, fens, wet meadows, etc.

The goal of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission is to preserve natural and open areas of the Meadowlands, to restore degraded wetlands, and to improve the water quality of the Hackensack River Estuary. The Commission has acquired over 1700 acres of wetlands for preservation and pursues the acquisition of additional sites as they become available.

The Meadowlands Environment Center was formed to increase awareness and enjoyment of our vital ecosystem. The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and Ramapo College of New Jersey entered into a partnership in 2003 to develop a comprehensive environmental education program for schools and the general public. Together, the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and the experienced team of educators from Ramapo College encourage the use of the environment as a classroom, increase awareness of the resources of the Meadowlands, and help communities recognize the critical issues that affect the Meadowlands District.