Cleaning Up the Raritan River

The Raritan River is New Jersey's largest river that is entirely contained in the state. Still, it does not get the attention of the Hudson or the Passaic rivers when it comes to pollution and cleanup.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raritan_river

There are 1,100 square-miles of rivulets and streams that spill into the Raritan. The river's source is Budd Lake in the more rural northwestern part of the state. Its path through the state takes it through 100 municipalities and seven counties to an industrial end in Middlesex County.

The Star Ledger reported on a recent symposium dedicated to the Raritan that plans to address on an annual basis the toxic cleanup and needed public access points for the Raritan River.

The Edison Wetlands Association, co-sponsored the event along with Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.

They discussed the fate of this waterway which was nicknamed "the Queen of Rivers" two centuries ago by poet John Davis, but whose estuary in Middlesex County goes today by the name "Valley of the Dumps." It was a sad turn for the river that gave refuge to General GeorgeWashington during the Revolutionary War to make the list as the country's 14th most-polluted river in the country in 1994.

photo: Mitsu Yasukawa/The Star-Ledger
Executive director of the Edison Wetlands Association,
Robert Spiegel, examines a dead turtle found
along a polluted stretch of the Raritan River in Edison.

The 12 miles of the lower Raritan River (New Brunswick and south) is the worst section. This area has ten Superfund sites either on the river or in places that drain into it.

The river also touches on 16 species on the state endangered list, such as bald eagles, rare butterflies and a type of mussel known as tidewater mucket.

The Endangered & Nongame Species Program's Speakers Bureau

The Division of Fish and Wildlife's Endangered & Nongame Species Program (ENSP), through the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ, offers interested groups an informative slide presentation and discussion on the efforts to research, manage and protect endangered and threatened species in New Jersey. Volunteers are also available to attend events with an exhibit to provide information about the ENSP's work and our endangered and nongame wildlife.

More than 50 trained Wildlife Conservation Corps volunteers with an outstanding knowledge of our program and commitment to this effort present this slide presentation and represent us at events.

The slide program lasts approximately 30 minutes and is geared toward adult audiences. Presence at events is flexible and arranged on a case by case basis.

The Speakers Bureau is always looking for new volunteers who would like to help spread the word about the work being done by the Endangered & Nongame Species Program. If you have some spare time and a talent for giving presentations or talking to people, you may be interested in signing up for the Speakers Bureau.

To schedule a presentation or participation in an event, or to volunteer as a speaker, contact debbi.nichols@conservewildlifenj.org or you call the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ at 609-984-0621.

The Eastern Woodrat

It's hard to get a lot of sympathy when I do a speaking engagement on NJ's endangered species for the eastern woodrat.

Unfortunately, eastern woodrats have been declining at an alarming rate throughout the northeastern portion of their range. The decline has been attributed, at least in part, to lethal infections of the parasite, raccoon roundworm.

The state's last remaining eastern woodrat Neotoma floridana population is at the Palisades Interstate Park in Bergen County.

A study of the raccoons at the Palisades revealed infection rates among raccoons to be relatively low compared to other areas where woodrats have disappeared. In 1998, observations found a growing woodrat population, possibly because the raccoon population had declined.

Woodrats typically live in rocky areas associated with mountain ridges such as cliffs, caves, talus slopes and rocky fissures. The rocky barrens where they den are generally devoid of vegetation with the exception of the occasional tree that manages to survive among the rocks.

Active primarily at night, woodrats leave the security of their rocky dens to visit adjacent areas to feed on the available vegetation.

In New Jersey, Allegheny woodrats occur in extensive talus fields at the base of
rock outcrops where the vegatation is birch, chestnut oak and the exotic paulownia (Paulownia tomentosa) trees found growing among the slopes of the Palisades.

Woodrats were considered extirpated in New York state by 1987 and surveys in Pennsylvania have shown that their numbers declined in the northeastern portion of the state and have disappeared from approximately one third of their former range there.

Back in 1984 and 1985, the Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Endangered and Nongame
Species Program conducted surveys of three historic sites and 16 sites that had suitable habitat. No animals were captured, although old sign was discovered at several sites.

The eastern, or Allegheny, woodrat was afforded protection under the New Jersey Endangered Species Act when it was added to the list as endangered in 1991.

The Palisades population has been monitored by live trapping since the mid-1980s. Trapping results between 1999 and 2001 indicate that this population has remained stable and may be increasing slightly.

Read: Endangered and Threatened Wildlife of New Jersey

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife of New Jersey

Every corner of New Jersey harbors natural wildlife of such value that it attracts birders and other naturalists from around the world. From the barrier beaches and coastal marshes at the ocean's edge, through the flood-plain forests and pine barrens, across the fertile rolling hills of the Piedmont, to the highlands; ridges, and valleys of northwestern New Jersey, the state is a cornucopia of wildlife.

With over 500 species calling the state home, New Jersey ranks as one of the most diverse wildlife habitats in the country. The state's importance doesn't end at the borders-New Jersey provides critical food and shelter to hundreds of species that use the state as a stop along their migratory route.

Yet, in the nation's most densely populated state, the loss of habitat continues at a relentless pace. The race is on to save natural areas and the species dependent upon them for survival.

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife of New Jersey is a richly illustrated color guide to the state's fifty-four most imperlled species, from bobcats to bobolinks, shortnosed sturgeons to loggerhead turtles, frosted elfins to triangle floaters, blue whales to American burying beetles.

Here, the authors detail each animal's natural history, reasons for its decline, what's been done so far-and what must be done-to keep New Jersey's wildlife flourishing. Written primarily by the people who know these species best, the biologists of the New Jersey Endangered and Nongame Species program, the book is divided into seven sections-mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, and bivalves.

A chapter on individual species details animal identification, distribution, habitat, diet, life cycle, status and conservation, and limiting factors and threats, as well as recommendations for preservation.

The authors also explore the particular characteristics of the species within New Jersey, including the species' distribution, population status, and breeding and migration behaviors. Sixty-three detailed maps and more than one hundred spectacular color photos provide readers with a rare glimpse of these seldom-seen species.

Wildlife serves as a harbinger for our own environment: if the air, water, and earth aren't healthy for animals, they surely can't be healthy for humans.



About the Authors
Bruce E. Beans is the chief editor/writer for the New Jersey Endangered and Nongame Species Program and author of Eagle's Plume: The Struggle to Preserve the Life and Haunts of America's Bald Eagle. Larry Niles was chief of the New Jersey Endangered and Nongame Species Program.

NY & NJ Trails

You can enjoy some excellent hiking trails and hikes within or just a day-trip away from New Jersey. People from other parts of the country (and, unfortunately, a lot of people in NJ) find that surprising.

Since 1920, the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference has partnered with government and private landowners to create, protect, and maintain a network of 1,700 miles of hiking trails in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan region.

The Trail Conference is a volunteer driven not-for-profit organization with a membership of 10,000 individuals and more than 100 clubs.

Want to take an easier hike and see waterfalls? Try They have a nice online search tool for finding hikes by difficulty (Easy, Moderate or Strenuous) or by Views and Features like waterfalls.

Hedden County Park in Morris County, NJ an easy 3.2 miles hike that includes a waterfall - or - try Falling Waters and Grand Loop Trails at Schooley's Mountain County Park (also Morris County) which is just 2.5 easy miles with a waterfall view.

Want more of a workout and also a hike you can take public transportation to instead of your car?

Horse Pond Mountain Loop at the Long Pond Ironworks State Park is 6 moderate to strenuous miles. Crossing a causeway over the Monksville Reservoir, you'll pass the historic buildings of the Long Pond Ironworks on your way.

The Trail Conference can even provide the best map for the hike.

Monksville Reservoir from Horse Pond Mountain

Join the NY-NJ Trail Conference

Leave No Trace

Leave No Trace is a set of principles for people who participate in outdoor recreation that seeks to minimize your impact on the natural environment.

The movement popularized the phrase "Take only photos, leave only footprints."

Back in the 1970s, the United States Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service started to educate their non-motorized visitors (hikers & campers mostly) how to have a minimal impact on the land.

The movement also caught on with the Sierra Club and the Boy Scouts of America. A formal education program was developed in 1990 by the United States Forest Service in conjunction with the National Outdoor Leadership School.

Wilderness areas managed by the U.S. Forest Service actively promote adherence to Leave No Trace principles. Wilderness advocates wanted to protect these areas but limiting wilderness access would probably have actually lost support for the Wilderness Act.

Instead of promoting woodcraft (where wilderness travelers exploit wilderness resources in order to rebel against modern technology), groups went the opposite direction and promoted "Leave No Trace" (where travelers use the latest technology to minimize impact).

The Leave No Trace program is actually managed by the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, a non-profit organization.

Leave No Trace's 7 principles are:

1. Plan Ahead and Prepare
2. Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
3. Dispose of Waste Properly
4. Leave What You Find
5. Minimize Use and Impact of Fire
6. Respect Wildlife
7. Be Considerate of Other Visitors

• National Park Service
• U.S. Forest Service
• Bureau of Land Management
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

A Victory For Trees

Photo:at the sign of the N,
originally uploaded by ronk53

Last week, the New Jersey Supreme Court decided in favor of the Jackson Tree Ordinance, overturning an Appellate Court decision made earlier this year.

One critical point of argument was that development must consider effects on the larger ecosystem, not only the individual lot. Builders had argued that planting trees offsite would not be a valuable replacement.

The ordinance requires developers to replace trees disturbed by construction, or pay into a fund to do so. The decision increases the ability of towns to protect the environment and do proper planning in their communities.

More than 200 municipalities in the state already have similar ordinances that are now protected by this ruling.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Trees_of_New_Jersey
• article about the decision
• NJ Shade TreeFederation
  

The Greatest Mass Extinction Since the Dinosaurs

What is the greatest mass extinction since the dinosaurs?

Population by population, species by species, amphibians are vanishing off the face of the Earth. Despite international alarm and a decade and a half of scientists scrambling for answers, the steady disappearance of amphibians continues.

Large scale die-offs of frogs around the world have prompted scientists to take desperate measures to try to save those frogs they can, even bathing frogs in Clorox solutions and keeping them in Tupperware boxes under carefully controlled conditions to prevent the spread of a deadly fungus.

Will it ever be safe to return the frogs back to the ecosystem from which they were taken?

One example here in New Jersey is the southern gray treefrog. This arboreal amphibian is equipped with large toe pads that enable it to cling to trees. These treefrogs can alter their coloration based on their activities or environmental conditions.

Because of its limited distribution in the state and the destruction of its habitat, the
southern gray treefrog was listed as an endangered species in New Jersey in 1979.

Since then, biologists have conducted research to determine the distribution, habitat use, and breeding ecology of the southern gray treefrog in New Jersey. Currently, efforts are being made to protect treefrog habitats on a comprehensive landscape level as well as on an individual wetland basis. Documented breeding ponds, as well as surrounding buffers of 150 to 300 feet, are protected under New Jersey land use regulations, including the Freshwater Wetlands Act and the Coastal Area Facilities Review.

Frogs: The Thin Green Line is one of many PBS videos from the series Nature that are now available online. Many also have Web-exclusive videos. In this program, you can see the effects of the chytrid fungus that may be the key to why one-third of amphibian species are threatened with extinction.

Watch the full Nature episode

The End of the Line for Fish

It had its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. The End of the Line is the first major documentary about the imminent peril facing the world’s oceans. The film explores the devastating effect that overfishing is having on fish stocks and the health of our oceans.

The film is based on the book, The End of the Line: How Overfishing Is Changing the World and What We Eat by Charles Clover.

Some scientists predict that if we continue fishing at the current rate, the planet will completely run out of fish by 2048. The film is aimed at a general audience, but will certainly have the interest of people who care about the environment, the safety of our food supply, and the preservation of endangered species.

The film aims to be more than just a doomsday warning. It offers real, practical solutions that are simple and doable, including advocating for controlled fishing of engendered species, protecting networks of marine reserves off-limits to fishing, and educating consumers that they have a choice by purchasing fish from sustainable fisheries.

The film is narrated by Ted Danson. It will be released theatrically beginning June 19th in 12 to 15 cities, and will be supported by numerous word-of-mouth screenings on June 8, 2009 — World Ocean Day. It has been endorsed by and with major marketing support from National Geographic, Greenpeace, and the Natural Resources Defense Fund (NRDC).

“The inconvenient truth about the impact of overfishing on the world’s oceans”
— The Economist

A clip about fish farming. Advances in fishing technology mean whole species of wild fish are under threat and the most important stocks we eat are predicted to be in a state of collapse.

• The film's official site EndOfTheLine.com
• The film's trailer and other video clips on YouTube

Polar Bears Lose Court Battle As They Lose Habitat

Last week, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced that the administration will retain the Bush administration's controversial rule on polar bear protections that I have written about here earlier. The rule had only been finalized in December. Six months earlier, the polar bear was declared a threatened species due to the melting of its sea-ice habitat.

A number of Democratic lawmakers, environmentalists and scientists argued to revert the Bush rule which limits the use of the Endangered Species Act to curb emissions of greenhouse gases.

To add to the strangeness of the decision, Salazar said that "To see the polar bear's habitat melting and an iconic species threatened is an environmental tragedy of the modern age. This administration is fully committed to the protection and recovery of the polar bear."

The Interior Department will need to defend the rule in court and there is sure to be opposition from environmental groups that see this as more than just polar bear protection, but as a way to force the government to consider the effects of greenhouse gases and to better regulate emissions.

Environmental groups have also sued to change the polar bear's status from "threatened" to "endangered."

Part of the administration's reluctance to revert the rule seems to be that they are opposed to using the Endangered Species Act as a way to enact regulations concerning climate change which they see as a different issue.

Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska and groups such as the American Petroleum Institute has defended the Bush rule. Additionally, the state of Alaska and the Pacific Legal Foundation filed lawsuits to block protection of the bear and there are also suits pending against the Interior Department from groups that want hunters to be able to bring back polar bear trophies from Canada.

Marcellus Shale Webinar

UPDATE to my earlier post
via http://www.grdodge.org/blog/2009/05/07/spotlight-on-marcellus-shale-webinar/

If you are a concerned citizen, funder, or a member of a nonprofit who wants to learn more about this “natural gas rush,” visit the G.R. Dodge website to view a webinar, hosted by Dodge and the New York Community Trust, and presented by Delaware Riverkeeper Network and Riverkeeper, Inc., who are working around the clock to ensure that industrial gas drilling does not threaten the critical water resources of New York, Pennsylvania and downstream water users in the Delaware River Watershed.

Rivers Can Be Endangered Too

Here's a list we don't want New Jersey to make it onto - the ten most endangered rivers in the U.S. as selected by AmericanRivers.org. 

A much better list is that of green infrastructure projects involving our waterways. There are a number of ready-to-go projects in New Jersey. These projects would be worth over $53 million in jobs and materials, but, more importantly to this blog, they would also improve clean water and boost natural flood protection.

“Clean water is our nation’s most vital resource, but our water infrastructure is outdated and crumbling, unable to cope with our drinking water, wastewater, and flood protection needs,” said Betsy Otto, vice president of strategic partnerships for American Rivers. “The good news is, investments in green solutions to these water infrastructure problems will create jobs, save money, and protect public health and safety.”

A wetland restoration project in Oxford, NJ could restore 225 acres of failing agricultural lands and a failing private levee along Furnace Brook to forested and floodplain wetlands. Nearly one mile of levees would be removed, ditching would be backfilled, and the land would be planted again to forested and marsh wetland vegetation. This project would restore natural flood protection and reduce downstream flood damage, improve wildlife habitat and expand an adjacent state wildlife area.

In Trenton, the Assunpink Creek restoration project would remove a culvert and improve the health of this Delaware River tributary. The effort would also include the construction of a multiple-use trail for public recreation. 

The Lower Millstone River Fish Passage Project is another project. The Millstone River, a tributary to the Raritan River, is near the townships of Franklin and Hillsborough, NJ. The Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association will conduct a study to examine the feasibility of restoring American shad and other fish in the lower Millstone River in central New Jersey. Among other potential restoration strategies, the project will explore the possibility of removing two dams on the lower Millstone River which would open an additional 14.1 miles of the river to fish. The study will assess the potential positive and negative effects of dam removal as well as other potential methods for providing fish passage on the river.

Full Moons, Horseshoe Crabs and Migratory Birds in NJ

Between about mid-May to mid-June every year, huge number of horseshoe crabs are on the beaches along Delaware Bay (between Delaware and New Jersey) to mate and to lay eggs under the sand.

The number of mating horseshoe crabs on the beach peaks at the night of full moon and at the time of high tide. The huge number of horseshoe crab eggs attracts many birds to converge for this annual feast. This month's full moon is on the 9th, and in June it will be on the 7th. Activity is likely to be at its peak in the latter part of May approaching the June full moon.

Horseshoe crabs are "living fossils" and have remained basically the same for 300 million years. The females (which are generally larger than males) carry tens of thousands of eggs which they deposit in the sand for males to fertilize.

Three beaches that people visit to watch horseshoe crabs and birds are Pickering Beach on the Delaware side, Reeds Beach on the New Jersey side and Plum Island in Sandy Hook, New Jersey. The locations and directions to these three beaches are:

Pickering Beach is at 19 S. Sandpiper Road, about 5 miles south east of Dover. A narrow public access path is near the intersection of S. Sandpiper Dr and Pickering Beach Rd.

Reeds Beach is in Cape May, NJ which offers many birding opportunities. Parking for watching migratory shorebirds and horseshoe crabs is at the end of N. Beach Avenue. There are two observation areas - from the designated beach area at the lot, and from the left side of a cement dike which offers a closer view of mating horseshoe crabs and feeding shorebirds. The left ocean-side of the dike is place to watch horseshoe crabs and shorebirds.

Plum Island is part of Sandy Hook Gateway National Recreation Area in New Jersey. The NJ Audubon Society is a good source of information on their Sandy Hook activities.

For more about horseshoe crab viewing locations on the East Coast, see www.ocean.udel.edu/horseshoecrab/

The spring migration of many species of shorebirds coincides with the arrival of the horseshoe crabs in Delaware Bay. Bird counts of migratory shorebirds show disturbing decreases in numbers, and those who study the migrations see a correlation shorebird population declines and horseshoe crab over-harvesting.

Horseshoe crabs have survived 300 million years of a changing planet, but may not survive human interference. Loss of habitat is a concern, but the use of the crabs as bait is more of a threat.

Between 1960 and 1980, scientists estimated the number of horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay to be relatively constant at 2-4 million horseshoe crabs. In 1990, 900,000 adults were counted in the annual horseshoe crab census coordinated by the University of Delaware Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service. Only 400,000 were counted in the 1999 census. From 1999 through 2002, the spawning population appears to have stabilized, remaining around 400,000 adults on the peak-night census.

horseshoe crabs, Sandy Hook - photos by Brian Richards

Sandy Hook Gateway National Recreation Area

The Sandy Hook Gateway National Recreation Area. is a slender peninsula that goes 6.5 miles into NY Harbor and covers 1665 acres.

Popular as a swimming beach in summer and fishing area year round, it is also a major beach nesting area.

The visitors center (2 miles in from entrance) can guide you to trails & observation areas, and warn you of nesting areas for piping plovers (at right), black skimmers, least terns and many shorebird species.

On the bay side, the Horseshoe Cove Salt Marsh is a good place to look for great blue herons, green herons and egrets. Offshore viewing from the beaches in summer may allow you a view of passing whales (hence the naming of the Spermaciti Cove Visitor Center)

In 1999, New Jersey passed a law that prohibits all types of nudism on state or beaches, but Sandy Hook's Gunnison Beach remains as the only legal nude beach in the state, since it is on federal land and not subject to state or municipal regulations. Gunnison is the largest clothing-optional recreation area on the East Coast.

From the Garden State Parkway, take exit 117 from the North or 105 from the south and follow signs on Rt. 36 for 12 miles. Admission is charged during the summer season.

Tourist information http://www.sandy-hook.com/

See Brian Richards' 3D / Panoramic view of the current state of Bridge Construction

The Passaic River Watershed

The Passaic River runs almost 80 miles (129 km) through northern New Jersey.

It starts by winding its way around the swamp lowlands in and around the Great Swamp taking in through tributaries much of the surface waters of northern portion of the state. In its lower portion, it moves through some of the most urbanized and industrialized areas of the state.

The Passaic River formed as a result of drainage from the massive proglacial lake that formed in Northern New Jersey at the end of the last ice age, approximately 13,000 years ago. Glacial Lake Passaic, as we call it now, had its center in the present lowland swamps of Morris County.

Great Falls of the Passaic River, by ronkowitz

The lake rose as the river was blocked, but eventually broke through at the Millington Gorge and the Paterson Falls as the glacier retreated.

Much of the lower river suffered severe pollution during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries because of the development that grew on its banks - in many cases in order to use the river as a resource or as a garbage dump.

The river's health has improved in the past 30 years. Some of that comes from the enactment of the 1972 Clean Water Act and other environmental legislation. Some improvement has come as a result of the decline of industry along the river.

The water quality is still poor. Sediment at the mouth of the river near Newark Bay still registers contamination by pollutants such as dioxin. Dioxin was produced at the Diamond Shamrock Chemical Plant in Newark as a waste product resulting from the production of the agent orange defoliation chemical used during the Vietnam War. The issue of responsibility for the cleanup of the dioxin contamination has been in the courts for decades without resolution.

The Passaic River flows close to my hometown, but even closer is the Peckman River which is one of the many small tributaries. The Peckman River originates in West Orange and flows northeasterly through Verona, Cedar Grove and Little Falls to its confluence with the Passaic River in the borough of Woodland Park (formerly West Paterson).

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) has issued notices banning commercial fishing and advising the general public that fish caught in the tidal Passaic River (from Dunedee Dam to the mouth at Newark Bay) should not be eaten. Still, I see people fishing along the banks - particularly for catfish.

You can access the the Passaic from a number of county parks. It is pretty much free of industrialization until it reaches the Summit/Chatham border. The upper portion before Summit is far more natural in appearance. I have seen canoeists and kayakers there.

When it enters Essex County, there are some natural marsh lands and wooded areas that make it more inaccessible and somewhat protected.

The more heavily populated areas of Passaic County come next with the lower portions of the river south of Paterson being much wider but more industrialized as it flows into Newark Bay.

The Passaic River is known for chronic flooding problems during heavy rainfall or snow-melt. The worst area is where the Pompton River joins the Passaic River in Wayne, New Jersey.

Unfortunately, building has long been allowed in this flood plain. A plan has been proposed for years to build a 20 mile river flood tunnel. The tunnel would divert flood waters directly into the bay. Some riverside residents have already taken buy-outs from the federal government but many people still live within the flood plain.

The Passaic River Coalition (PRC) gives valuable assistance and stewardship for the preservation and protection of over 1,000 miles of waterways including the Passaic River. It was established in 1969.

Their goals include improvements in land-water resource management, and public health issues by working as an advisor to citizens, other environmental organizations, governments, and businesses. They gather scientific data to be used for creating wise management policies. They create maps and graphic displays that illustrate the physical, demographic, and socioeconomic characteristics of the River and its watershed for reports, open space plans, and natural resource inventories.

Their scope goes beyond the Passaic River's banks and into the larger watershed. They have met a Land Trust goal of obtaining 1000 acres by acquiring 34 properties in 6 counties (Passaic, Morris, Bergen, Essex, Sussex, and Somerset).

Protecting the watershed means protecting drinking water, preserving sensitive wildlife habitat, improving water quality, creating new open space, and promoting natural flood control management.

The PRC has been involved in the creation of new surface supply systems such as the Monksville Reservoir and the development of three Water Supply Master Plans for New Jersey. PRC has assisted in plans to restore Greenwood Lake, a primary water source for northern New Jersey and is creating the overall restoration guide for the Lake.

The next challenge is to address the 46 million gallon per day groundwater deficit in the NJ Highlands. You can join the PRC and donate to their fight.



A Great Conveniency - A Maritime History of the Passaic River,
Hackensack River, and Newark Bay


MORE INFORMATION

• Glacial Lake Passaic
• Great Swamp Watershed Association

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.

• NJ Meadowlands informaton on Wikipedia
• The Meadowlands Blog
• Meadowlands Environment Center, Two Dekorte Park Plaza, Lyndhurst, NJ, 07071