The New Jersey Highlands

The Highlands of New Jersey is one of those areas that people from other parts of the country just don't associate with NJ. (The Pinelands is another area like that.) The forested ridges, rocky cliffs, and the streams, lakes, ponds, and reservoirs for fishing and recreation are all there. 

The Highlands covers 840,000 acres and includes 188 municipalities. There are 7 Highlands counties – Bergen, Passaic, Morris, Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, and Somerset – and all contain a diversity of forests, wetlands and grasslands. That habitat diversity is also home to threatened and endangered wildlife.

There are 72 New Jersey-listed endangered, threatened, and rare animal species, including mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies, and mussels, and two species (the Indiana bat and bog turtle) are Federally-listed. There are also 137 endangered, imperiled, and rare plant species.

The Highlands also contains historic structures and archaeological heritage sites that need protection.

Hikers can find miles of trails, including both the Appalachian Trail and the Highlands Millennium Trail.

For over half of New Jersey’s residents (4 million+), the Highlands is a critical area for their drinking water. The NJ Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act was passed in 2004, dividing the 840,000-acre region into a “Preservation Area” with strict NJDEP regulations and mandatory Regional Master Plan conformance, and a “Planning Area” with voluntary Plan compliance.

As is often the case in NJ, suburban sprawl is the greatest threat to the Highlands’ drinking water supply, and to the forests, farms, wildlife habitat, and historic, recreational and scenic resources.

There are several areas in NJ that are a focus for Highlands Coalition.

The Wyanokie and Farny Highlands (Passaic and Bergen) contain unprotected lands in nearby Wanaque and Split Rock reservoirs that would connect existing State and county parks and forests in these two heavily utilized recreational areas. This focal area was ranked highly due to its value for water resources and recreation, and secondarily for biodiversity and forest land.

The Pequannock Watershed (Morris, Passaic, and Sussex) serves as the core of the northern New Jersey Highlands and serves as a major hub connecting existing open space areas. This focal area was ranked highly due to its multiple values for water resources, forest land, biodiversity, and recreation.

The wooded ridges of Sparta Mountain/Lubber’s Run (Morris and Sussex) provide an important greenway corridor connecting Mahlon Dickerson Reservation in the north and Allamuchy Mountain State Park in the south. Major gaps in conservation protection include the nearby areas of Mase Mountain. This focal area was ranked highly due to its value for productive forest land, biodiversity, and recreation.

Upper Pohatcong/Pequest area (Warren) also contains forested ridges and wetlands centered around the Pequest Wildlife Management Area, which serve as an important groundwater recharge, wildlife habitat, and outdoor recreation area. This focal area was ranked highly due to its value for water resources and recreation and secondarily for its productive forest and farmland.

Scott Mountain/Musconetcong Ridge in Warren and Hunterdon counties and the neighboring productive farmland of the Delaware, Pohatcong, and Musconetcong valleys form a large contiguous area of high-quality rural landscape. This focal area was ranked highly due to its value for biodiversity and productive farmland, and secondarily for forest land and recreation.

MORE

• Highlands Wildlife Brochure (pdf)


• NJ Highlands Critical Treasures map


• New Jersey Highlands Coalition
  

Lessons from the Lake Mead Deadpool

Lake Mead - by SpaceEconomist192, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Lake Mead in Nevada is near Las Vegas and is the nation's largest reservoir. Right now, it is so low it's getting perilously close to what's known as "deadpool." This is a level where the Hoover Dam's hydropower turbines would be shut off for the first time in its 86-year history. 

Of course, cities and farms in the desert Southwest were built with the idea that they could rely on the lake and the Colorado River as their water source

When I was in Las Vegas 10 years ago, I was told that there was a water crisis and we saw restrictions on residential water use and also on the way the Vegas casinos were using water for their attractions. Now, you can go on the road crossing the Hoover Dam and see the exposed columns that for decades were hidden by water.

Still, many news reports say that even with many warnings and stories about the dire situation, day-to-day life hasn't really changed for most of the 40 million people who rely on the Colorado River for drinking water.

South of the Hoover Dam and Highway 93 in Arizona is still a place where are moving faster than almost any other state. NPR reports that loose zoning in Maricopa County and loopholes in Arizona water law make it one of the nation's fastest growing counties.

There are lessons here for all places, including New Jersey, even if we are not in a desert. Droughts are more common the past few decades. Economists predict that water may well become as valuable as oil one day. Of course, water is a renewable resource if it is treated correctly - and if it is available. 

Urban areas of Arizona have been storing their legal share of Colorado River water underground. For example, Tucson has "banked" more than five and a half years of excess Colorado River water in its basin aquifers already."

Farmers are resorting to pumping groundwater because they are no longer getting any Colorado River water deliveries due to cutbacks, and the 23-year megadrought in the Colorado River basin. 

Some people in the region question using the term "drought" which suggest a temporary condition that will end and it seems to be more of climate reality. 

Lake Mead is currently at just 28% of capacity but some projections say it could fall to deadpool within the next few years. There is still a reduced Lake Mead for now, but marinas on the shore have had to be moved several times this year alone as the shoreline recedes.

MORE  npr.org/2022/09/22/1124150368/where-the-colorado-river-crisis-is-hitting-home

2017 Lake Mead photo showing the water level fall

Protecting Category 1 Rivers and Streams in NJ

New Jersey uses a tiered system to classify waterways with the highest tier being streams designated as “Outstanding Natural Resource Waters.” This allows them to be set aside in their natural state for posterity. Now, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection plans to designate about 750 additional miles of NJ's rivers and streams as “Category 1.” This designation will afford them stronger protections.

We already have about 6,800 miles of our state's waterways designated as Category 1. That means they are protected for their exceptional values ecologically, as a water supply, for recreation, and/or as fisheries For newly designated waterways, it means that they will be protected from development by 300-foot buffers, and any wastewater and discharges would have to meet more stringent standards so that “no measurable change” in water quality occurs.

This upgrade of waterways will be the first major one in more than a decade. Protecting waterways is far better - and less expensive - than cleaning up polluted ones.

“Category One waterways provide drinking water and sustain important fish and aquatic resources,’’ said Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Catherine McCabe, noting that the Category 1 designations also help protect important wildlife habitats.

Looking northwest from Ramapo Lake Dam on the Hoeferlin Trail, Ramapo Mountain State Forest, NJ - Wikimedia

New Jersey is a water-rich state being surrounded by water on three sides, and having thousands of waterways acting as veins and arteries across the state. Many smaller headwaters streams connect to our major rivers and that water eventually flows into the Atlantic Ocean, Delaware River, Delaware Bay, Hudson River or New York Bay.

A good example of the connected nature of our waterways is the Ramapo River which gets its start at Round Lake in the Village of Monroe, New York. It flows southeast through the village and was dammed there in 1741 for a sawmill and grist mill. It then goes on to Harriman where the Nepera Chemical Plant was built. Though it has been dismantled, a Superfund site has been designated at the plant's location where barrels of toxic chemicals were buried. From Harriman, the river turns south through Ramapo, New York and then enters northern Bergen County, NJ.

In NJ, it follows the east side of the ridge of the Ramapo Mountains and into Potash Lake in Oakland and then into Pompton Lake in Pompton Lakes. The water that flows out of Pompton Lake forms the border between Pompton Lakes and Wayne. At its confluence with the Pequannock River between Pequannock and Wayne, it forms the Pompton River. Some of that water is diverted to the Wanaque Reservoir and the rest flows into the Passaic River, which flows into Newark Bay and, from there, New York Bay and then into the Atlantic Ocean.

Map of the Passaic/Hackensack watershed - Wikimedia

The NJ Department of Environmental Protection also proposes to reclassify waterways based upon fish sampling data, recognizing 24 stream segments as Exceptional Fisheries Resources, or “trout production” waterways. These waterways, located mostly in the New Jersey Highlands region, were found to have naturally reproducing trout. Trout that reproduce naturally are an excellent natural indicator of clean and healthy water, and that is important as the Highlands region supplies over two-thirds of the state with drinking water.

To see an interactive map of waterways proposed for reclassification, go to nj.gov/dep/workgroups/docs/2019c1_proposal/2019c1upgrade.html. Here are a few newly designated waterways:

• Cooper River in the city of Camden, which flows into the Delaware River
• Upper sections of the Maurice River in Cumberland County and also
• many of its tributaries (Menantico Creek, Blackwater Branch and Little Robin Branch)
• Much of the South Branch of the Raritan River in Hunterdon and Somerset counties, including tributaries like the Neshanic River, the Rock Brook and Prescott Brook.
• Much of the Lamington River and its tributaries, which flow into the North Branch of the Raritan River;
• Many waterways flowing into the upper Delaware River, including the Pequest River, Paulins Kill River, and the Lubbers Run, a Musconetcong River tributary;
• Sections of the Salem River and its tributaries, including Oldmans Creek and Raccoon Creek. (The Salem River flows into the lower Delaware River)
• The Fishing Creek in Cape May County, which flows into the Delaware Bay.

Source: Press Release state.nj.us/dep/newsrel/2019/19_0013.htm

Be a Watershed Steward in New Jersey

The NJDEP is seeking recruits for its AmeriCorps New Jersey Watershed Ambassadors, a program that engages communities to protect and improve water quality. Watershed Ambassadors are the DEP’s facilitators in the field, collecting water quality information, giving presentations on clean water and championing partnership projects in which the public help make a difference in their communities.

New Jersey's waters are a valuable and vulnerable resource. The AmeriCorps New Jersey Watershed Ambassadors Program plays an important role in raising awareness of how human activities can affect water quality, especially in the most densely populated state in the nation. Each year, a new group of 20 Watershed Ambassadors engage with community members, channeling awareness into action.

The program is now in its 18th year and is administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Water Monitoring & Standards. The goals of the program are to promote watershed stewardship through education and direct community involvement, and to monitor stream health through performing visual and biological assessments. Individual AmeriCorps members are assigned to each of New Jersey's 20 watershed management areas (WMAs) to serve as "Watershed Ambassadors" to their watershed communities.


Info on the Watershed Ambassadors Program
More info in DEP news release

Clean Waters

The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 was the first major U.S. law to address water pollution. Growing public awareness and concern for controlling water pollution led to sweeping amendments in 1972. As amended in 1972, the law became commonly known as the Clean Water Act (CWA).

Clean Water Action is one group that has worked to win strong health and environmental protections. They organize strong grassroots groups and coalitions, and campaigns to elect environmental candidates and to solve environmental and community problems.

Some of those campaignsTake action to protect drinking water and clean up polluted waterways:

• Get health-harming toxics out of everyday products
• Protect our water from dirty energy threats - drilling and fracking for oil and gas, and power plant pollution
• Build a future of clean water and clean energy
• Keep our clean water laws strong and effective to protect water and health.

In New Jersey, you can reach Clean Water Action at:
198 Brighton Avenue
Long Branch, New Jersey, 07740
p: 732.963.9714
and
559 Bloomfield Avenue
Montclair, New Jersey, 07042
p: 973.744.3005

A group protecting the water offshore is Clean Ocean Action which helps to identify the sources of pollution and attack each source by using research, public education, and citizen action to convince our public officials to enact and enforce measures which will clean up and protect our ocean.

Clean Ocean Action (COA) is a broad-based coalition of 125 active boating, business, community, conservation, diving, environmental, fishing, religious, service, student, surfing, and women's groups.

Their campaigns include:

• Improve programs and laws that protect public health at swimming beaches.
• Reduce plastics and litter that pollute waterways, spoil beautiful beaches, and harm or kill marine life including turtles, whales, seals, birds, and fish.
• Protect coasts from oil and gas drilling in the ocean, including Maine to Florida.
• Establish the nation’s first Clean Ocean Zone to start a national chain reaction for all coasts.
• Reduce toxins in waterways to ensure fish and shellfish are free of pollution and safe to eat.
• Educate and motivate citizens from the small to the tall.

National Drinking Water Week

As part of national Drinking Water Week, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is working to educate residents about how lead enters drinking water and the steps they can take to reduce any risk to their families.

“Clean and safe drinking water is important to all of us,” DEP Acting Commissioner Catherine R. McCabe said. “As we mark national Drinking Water Week, it’s important for families to take a little time to become better informed about how to find out if lead is in their water and what they can do about it.”

Drinking Water Week is held each May to draw attention to the importance of drinking water and the efforts that government and system operators take to ensure safe and reliable supplies. Drinking Water Week is sponsored by the American Water Works Association and its members.

In New Jersey, the DEP is responsible for enforcing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule. The DEP evaluates results of testing done by water systems at properties most likely to contain lead. If more than 10 percent of the result are above 15 parts per billion, the water system will conduct more frequent sampling and perform corrective actions.

In almost all cases, minute particles of lead enter drinking water as the result of leaching from customers’ service lines, internal plumbing, lead-based solder, and certain fixtures. Lead is rarely found in the source of water delivered by water systems.

While lead is a concern in urban areas with older houses and buildings, it can also be a concern in other areas. According to the EPA, lead is more likely to be present in structures built prior to 1986.

Many factors affect the amount of lead that leaches into the water, including lead content of pipes, fixtures, and solder, the length of time that water remains standing in the plumbing; water temperature; pH; and water hardness.

Lead presents health concerns for people of all ages, but particularly pregnant women, infants and young children. If consumers live in homes where lead is in contact with drinking water, they may be at risk of exposure.

A study from the American Water Works Association suggests that lead service lines (lines that connect a system’s water mains to properties the system serves) may be present in 6 million to 10 million homes nationwide.

Water systems can adjust water chemistry to reduce leaching of lead into water. Property owners can also take steps to reduce potential exposure to lead.

To determine if lead is present in pipes or plumbing, homeowners or tenants can consult with a licensed plumber or their public water supplier. If you are unsure who your supplier is, click here. If lead components are found, it is recommended that property owners explore options for replacing them.

Until lead service lines or plumbing can be replaced, the following steps can be taken to reduce exposure to lead in drinking water:

• Run your water to flush out lead. If a faucet hasn’t been used for several hours, run the water for 15 to 30 seconds or until it becomes cold or reaches a steady temperature before using it for drinking or cooking.  This flushes any lead particles in water from the pipes.
• Use cold water for cooking and preparing baby formula.  Do not cook with or drink water from the hot water tap; lead dissolves more readily in hot water. 
• Test the water. Contact your water system or a certified drinking water laboratory to have your home drinking water tested for lead. (Please note that the homeowner may be responsible for any costs).
• Do not boil water to remove lead.  Boiling water will not remove lead from the water.
• Use alternate sources or treatment of water.  Consider using bottled water for drinking and cooking, or a water filter designed to remove lead.  Read the package to be sure the filter is approved to reduce lead or contact NSF International at 800-NSF-8010 or www.nsf.org for information on performance standards for water filters.  Be sure to maintain and replace a filter device in accordance with the manufacturer’s standards to ensure water quality.
• Get your child tested.  Contact your local health department or healthcare provider to find out how to get your child tested for lead if you are concerned about lead exposure.
• Ask your school or child care about their lead sampling results. Any drinking water outlet (i.e. fountain or sink) with a result over the action level of 15 ppb should be taken out of service immediately. Click here for more information on school testing. 

Finding information about local water is simple. As required by federal law, water suppliers must provide customers with an annual water quality report, also called a Consumer Confidence Report. This report identifies the quality of drinking water and lists sampling results as well as drinking water standards. Information on each community’s local source or sources for drinking water is also provided in the Consumer Confidence Report.

Although customers are directly notified of any violations by their water system, the DEP’s  Drinking Water Watch website provides current online access to drinking water data, including water testing results and any violations.

More information about lead in drinking water at: www.DrinkTap.org 

and

 www.nj.gov/dep/watersupply/dwc-lead-consumer.html

SOURCE: http://www.nj.gov/dep/newsrel/2018/18_0036.htm

The New Jersey Highlands and Watersheds

The New Jersey Highlands are part of the Appalachian Mountains that run along the East Coast from Maine to Georgia, as does the Appalachian Trail.

This region of New Jersey is almost 860,000 acres of forested ridges, farmlands, and a variety of recreation, wildlife and historic gems.

It is also a very important watershed that is continually being threatened and defended to be preserved from pollution and development. It provides more than half of New Jersey's population with clean drinking water. It also supplies industry with water.

The Highlands stretch about 60 miles across our state from Phillipsburg in the southwest to Oakland in the northeast. Of course, it extends, as the map shows, beyond New Jersey.

It covers portions of seven northwest New Jersey counties — Bergen, Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Warren — and more than 88 municipalities.

One of the main objectives of the Highlands Act was to protect the watershed.

I continue to believe that water will be the oil of the future - an investment that will grow in the very near future.

In 2004, Governor McGreevey signed the Highlands Act into law to establish an independent Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council. they were charged with creating a regional master plan.  That plan was meant to guide development into appropriate areas and protect water resources, forests, critical wildlife habitat, farmland, historic sites, recreation and scenic beauty.

To learn more about the Highlands and what is being done to protect it, go to state.nj.us/njhighlands. and www.njhighlandscoalition.org

Bringing the Assunpink Creek Back Into the Daylight in Trenton

Assunpink Creek flowing through Trenton near Mill Hill ParkMichael Mancuso/The Times

Work is expected to begin on a $4 million restoration this spring that is being financed 75 percent by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and 25 percent by the DEP through a federal Clean Water Act grant.

What the project hopes to accomplish is to restore the Assunpink Creek in downtown Trenton. You say you've never seen it? That's because decades ago this tributary of the Delaware River was channeled into an underground culvert. It disappears from view between South Broad and South Warren streets.

The idea years ago was certainly to allow for greater development where the creek flowed, but the culvert prevented fish from migrating into the Delaware. The downtown also lost the natural beauty of the stream.

Maybe it was a sign from nature when the nine years ago part of the culvert roof collapsed. The immediate effect was not good - a safety hazard that was fenced off and became an overgrown lot.


But this project to restore the creek looks like it will now happen.

On the New Jersey Future website at www.njfuture.org, you can see maps and historic photos.

The term for this restoration is "daylighting," as in bringing back the water to the light of day from its capture underground.

The Assunpink Creek is 25 miles long, and drains approximately 91 square miles in central New Jersey. The main tributaries that feed Assunpink Creek are Shabakunk Creek and Miry Run. The headwaters begin in Millstone Township, in Monmouth County, and flow into the Delaware River in Trenton.

The creek gathers intensity as it meanders west from Millstone Township in Monmouth County, through the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area and Mercer County Park, across the old, flat clays and silts of the Raritan and Magothy formations into Trenton.

The Lower Assunpink Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project study area is located on a 3- mile section of the Assunpink Creek between the Delaware River and the Trenton city limits. Several former industrial sites, abandoned bridges, and a 500-foot section of the creek between Broad and Warren Streets, contained within a buried box culvert were identified as candidates for ecological restoration.

The buried box culvert, known locally as the Broad Street culvert, was evaluated during the feasibility study and approved for removal and restoration of a natural creek channel. The Broad Street culvert removal project is located in the heart of the downtown Trenton business and historic district on a recovering urban stream that also serves to connect several greenway and urban park facilities.

illustration via www.trentonhistory.org

The project site is also the location of the the Battle of Assunpink Creek (AKA the Second Battle of Trenton) during the American Revolution. On Jan. 2, 1777, the Continental Army and supporting militias held a defensive line along the creek's south shore. Under George Washington's command, the Americans repelled charges by British and Hessian soldiers across a stone bridge spanning the creek, as well as an attempt to ford the creek near its mouth.

By morning, Washington had reached Princeton and after a brief battle, the British there were decisively defeated and most of the garrison was captured. With their third defeat in ten days, Cornwallis' superior, General William Howe ordered the army to withdraw from southern New Jersey and most of the way back to New York. The British left forward positions at New Brunswick and Washington moved his army to Morristown for winter quarters.

The daylighting of the stream this year will mean the removal of the culvert structure, allowing the stream to be exposed to natural sunlight, and the resulting open channel design will improve anadromous fish migration. Low-light conditions can disorient migrating fish, hindering their ability to spawn upstream.

The project will also benefit businesses adjacent to the site, provide recreational options for visitors and local residents, and provide historical and educational opportunities for the community.

The name Assunpink comes from the Lenape word for "stony, watery place," describing the gravelly springs of New Jersey's 65 million-year-old ancient coastline. This ironstone "cuesta," or ridgeline divides the inner and outer coastal plains.

Mussel Power To Help Clean Polluted Waters

An Eastern elliptio freshwater mussel
Westcott Phillip/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

I am reading about how "Natural Filters," such as mussels, are being used to help clean polluted waters, such as the Delaware River.

Populations that have been decimated or lost are being re-established to help filter out the very pollution generated by agriculture, industry, and development that threatened or endangered the species.

Freshwater mussels are "voracious filter feeders able to cycle gallons of water per hour." By taking in phytoplankton and small particles in streams and freshwater tidal habitats, they eject both clearer water and also a nutrient-rich detritus that actually fertilizes the stream and its sediments.
As with some other species, a healthy population of mussels indicates that water is of good water quality.

Mussels are among the earth’s longest living invertebrates. There are about 900 known species. Freshwater mussels live on every continent but Antarctica. Some species survive 100 years and more. 

Unfortunately, they become endangered because their long lives mean that they face long-term exposures to pollution and are often the first victims of the increases in silt and theexcess nutrients that come with runoff from developed urban and agricultural land.

The Delaware River once had roughly a dozen native freshwater mussel species. While several still survive in isolated populations, the majority of the river’s mussels—and the species Kreeger’s Freshwater Mussel Recovery Program has, since 2007, focused on — is the Eastern elliptio, a dark shelled mussel up to five inches long with a pearly pink interior. While rare in the tidal estuary, elliptio is common in the river above the reach of the tides at Trenton, New Jersey.

William Lellis of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), who surveyed the upper Delaware mussels, estimates there might be as many as two million per river mile. With no dam along the Delaware’s main stem, the American eel, which hosts the mussel’s developing larvae on its gills, can repopulate mussels into beds far upriver, where, as a Wild and Scenic River, the runoff is freer of silt and nutrients than in the highly developed and industrialized estuary. There, the nutrient loads can be very high. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s last National Coastal Condition Report found that the Delaware estuary had more high-nitrogen sites than any other Northeast coastal estuary. Surveys have shown that of 70 Pennsylvania streams, for instance, only four contained any freshwater mussels.

Kreeger realizes it’s critical to find out where and how many mussel beds remain in the estuary, determine where they might still survive if given the chance, and then try to restore those streams to the point where their mussel populations could be rebuilt. (To reach more streams and involve the public in the project, Kreeger has enlisted and trained volunteers to survey mussels in their local streams.) In 2011 and 2012, Kreeger reintroduced mussels into three southeastern Pennsylvania streams and, despite severe flooding, most of the animals survived. The idea, of course, is that, once established, mussels will begin to clean both the water and sediments in their new habitat. Can they do it?

SOURCE: http://e360.yale.edu/digest/natural_filters_mussels_deployed_to_clean_up_polluted_waterways/4400/

NJ Voters Approve Ballot Question on Preservation

New Jersey voters voted YES this week on Ballot Question 2, amending the state constitution to set aside a larger percentage of the corporate business tax (from 4 to 6%) for preservation. This does not mean an increase in the corporate or other taxes, just a reallocation of how the collected taxes are dispensed. 

 

The question was approved by an overwhelming 65 percent of Garden State voters. According to the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, this is the fourteenth time in 52 years that voters have approved efforts to preserve New Jersey's clean water, productive farmland, parks, natural lands and historic sites.

Being the nation's most densely populated state, makes saving land for all of our communities even more critical. For example, with rising sea levels and increasingly severe storms, protecting lands that mitigate flooding all the more urgent.  

New Jersey is considered to be the first state projected to be fully "built out" - with all land either preserved or developed. Preserving and adding what we can to parks, farmlands,  and forests, and investing in open spaces can help protect and expand a healthy environment for current and future generations.

New Jersey's Pearl River and the Paterson Pearl

I wrote recently about the Alonzo F. Bonsal Wildlife Preserve in Montclair. This urban forest is the remnants of wetlands and uplands that surround the Third River. The river is a major tributary of the lower Passaic River watershed.

The source (headwaters) of the Third River are in Rifle Camp Park in Woodland Park. The headwaters were impounded in 1899 to form the Great Notch Reservoir which greatly reduced the river’s flow.

The Third River’s current name was derived from the fact that it lies north of two other Passaic River tributaries - the First and Second Rivers.

At one time, the river was known as Pearl River due to the discovery of the "Queen Pearl," also known as the "Paterson Pearl."

freshwater mussels   via fws.gov

Freshwater pearls are found in a river’s mussel population. The Paterson Pearl was a 93 grain pink pearl and was one of the first freshwater pearls to be discovered in the United States. Other pearls were found in the Third River but none matched the Paterson Pearl.

Although freshwater mussels are most diverse in North America, where there are 281 species and 16 subspecies, they are among the most rapidly declining animal groups on the continent. The Nature Conservancy recognizes 55% of North America's mussel species as extinct or imperiled compared to only 7% of the continent's mammal and bird species.

The Paterson Pearl was discovered in Notch Brook, near Paterson, in 1857 by a carpenter named Jacob Quackenbush. It started a "pearl rush" that almost stripped the streams of Notch Brook of freshwater mussels and led to the discovery of some lesser pearls but worth around $15,000.

The pearl rush flowed over to other streams and rivers in New Jersey and it had a very negative impact on mussel populations. High quality pearls were found the Rock Road Brook, the Godwinville Brook and Cherry Lane Brook. The exploitation of the freshwater mussels in the waters of Passaic county and other counties depleted the mussel population, and within a few years the entire population of mussels were totally decimated. That eliminated the natural pearl industry.

The pearl fever spread to other states, and pearls were discovered in New York, Ohio, Texas, Arkansas, Florida, Connecticut, Mississippi and Wisconsin.

IMAGE: Royal Ontario Museum - the

pearl believed to be the "Paterson Pearl"

The "Paterson Pearl" was purchased by Charles L. Tiffany of Tiffany & Co. New York City, for $1,500, and as it was difficult to find buyers for the pearl in the United States, the company sent it to their Paris House for sale at 12,500 francs (about $2,500). The French dealer sold it to Empress Eugenie de Montijo, the Queen consort of Emperor Napoleon III, and it then became known as the "Queen Pearl" or the "American Queen Pearl" or the "Tiffany Queen Pearl."


Other extraordinary pearls are also sometimes referred to as "Queen Pearls."

Today, the mussels and pearls are long gone from these waters and the name Pearl River has been replaced by Third River as designated by cartographers.

SOURCE:
For more history on the Paterson Pearl and the resulting pearl fever, see internetstones.com

Applications Being Accepted for Watershed Ambassadors Program

New Jersey is looking for its next generation of environmental leaders, young people with a hands-on desire to improve their state and the quality of life for all of our residents. Some of those future leaders are likely to be found in the Department of Environmental Protection's AmeriCorps Watershed Ambassadors Program, which is now seeking recruits for its 2013 class.

Coordinators are currently accepting applications for the next group of AmeriCorps Watershed Ambassadors through Aug 17. There are 20 potential watershed management areas across the state where an ambassador can be placed. Ambassadors work with all sectors of society to improve the quality of New Jersey’s waterways, nurturing community-based environmental activities, and empowering State residents to make responsible and informed decisions regarding their watersheds.

“Individuals who are selected for the Watershed Ambassadors program go through a rigorous training program that prepares them to work in the environmental field, particularly in the area of water resources,” said Jill Lipoti, DEP’s Division of Water Monitoring and Standards Director. "Ambassadors have proven to be extremely valuable resources in assisting the State in fill water quality information gaps.”

The DEP began hosting this federal AmeriCorps program in 2000. AmeriCorps is a national service initiative that began in 1993 and is also known as the domestic Peace Corps. The organization recently announced grants for programs, nationwide. New Jersey’s Watershed Ambassador Program was a recipient and received $260,000 in federal funding for 2013.

Ambassadors are expected to complete 1,700 hours of service in a 10 to 12 month period. In return, they receive a living stipend of up to $12,100 over the course of the term; eligibility for health benefits during this period; and training prior to and throughout their term of service.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens, have a Bachelor's Degree, and must have a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation to get to and from field sites.

In 2012, 20 individuals served as the DEP’s AmeriCorps Watershed Ambassadors. Current accomplishments to date include:

Nearly 600 visual and biological assessments completed:

• Second year implementation of a new protocol for assessment of 100 lakes and 20 climate change stations;
• 1,163 volunteers trained in the DEP’s visual and biological assessment protocols;
• 1,294 educational watershed demonstrations performed reaching 25,944 people;
• Engaged in community watershed projects generating about 7,000 stewardship hours;
• Served as captains for Governor Christie’s Barnegat Bay Blitz initiative;
• Serve as captains for Delaware River and Bay – Dash for the Trash Cleanups to commemorate National AmeriCorps Week

Interested applicants for the 2012-2013 Program should apply by August 17 online or by sending a resume and cover letter to the address on the website nj.gov/dep/newsrel/2012/12_0076.htm

Want To Be A Spill Spotter?

I can't believe that it has been two years since the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. When that happened, there was even talk that if it wasn't capped some of the oil would be making it up the Atlantic coast to NJ waters.

NJ doesn't allow offshore drilling currently. But the Delaware and Raritan bays are very active ports and our oil refineries bring tankers in loading and unloading petroleum and other chemicals. So, NJ is vulnerable and should be prepared.

The American Littoral Society has a "Spill Spotters" program in which they train volunteer citizens and community groups to recognize and respond to signs of an oil spill.

I only just became aware of the program via the NJ Conservation blog and the first of the three-hour workshops just took place on Delaware Bay, Barnegat Bay and on Raritan Bay.

But more are planned over the summer and The Littoral Society is looking for individuals, as well as teachers, scout leaders and other community activists who can, in turn, pass the knowledge on to those interested in coastal protection. The workshops are active learning with seine nets, clam rakes and binoculars. Participants learn to how to collect baseline data on birds, fish, crustaceans, mollusks, worms and other creatures living in and around coastal waters, since knowing the normal background conditions will help them detect problems in the future.

Individuals and groups can then "adopt" spots along bays or estuaries, collect biological data with the help of American Littoral Society staff members. It's a good volunteer opportunity and a great way to learn more about your local waterways.

The Spill Spotters use an oil spill response toolkit and have information for reporting problems, but their job is not remediation (such as caring for oil-soaked birds) although they can get that training too if they're interested.

For more information about the Spill Spotters program and to find a workshop near you, visit www.spillspotters.net or contact Stevie Thorsen at Stevie@littoralsociety.org or 732-291-0055.

Water, Water Everywhere But Not That Much To Drink

Water.org is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization committed to providing safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries. I found the organization through a news story on TV featuring one of its founders, actor Matt Damon. It's good to have a famous face and name attached so that a cause gets some exposure, but Damon is seriously involved in this effort.



The water crisis today is not an issue of scarcity, but of access. It is a frightening and sobering fact that the water in an American's toilet is cleaner than the water many people in the world have to struggle to get for drinking and cooking.

Some water facts from water.org/learn-about-the-water-crisis/facts/

• More people in the world own cell phones than have access to a toilet.  884 million people lack access to safe water supplies; approximately one in eight people.
• 3.575 million people die each year from water-related disease. 
•  The water and sanitation crisis claims more lives through disease than any war claims through guns. 
•  People living in the slums often pay 5-10 times more per liter of water than wealthy people living in the same city.
• An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than a typical person in a developing country slum uses in a whole day.
• Only 62% of the world’s population has access to improved sanitation – defined as a sanitation facility that ensures hygienic separation of human excreta from human contact.
• Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection and 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation, including 1.2 billion people who have no facilities at all.
• Diarrhea remains in the second leading cause of death among children under five globally. Nearly one in five child deaths – about 1.5 million each year – is due to diarrhea. It kills more young children than AIDS, malaria and measles combined.
• Every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease, and 1.4 million children die as a result of diarrhea each year.

It is also shocking to see the impact water has on women. In just one day, more than 200 million hours of women’s time is consumed for the most basic of human needs — collecting water for domestic use.  A study by the International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) of community water and sanitation projects in 88 communities found that projects designed and run with the full participation of women are more sustainable and effective than those that do not. This supports an earlier World Bank study that found that women’s participation was strongly associated with water and sanitation project effectiveness.

Over 50 percent of all water projects fail and less than five percent of projects are visited, and far less than one percent have any longer-term monitoring.  Investment in safe drinking water and sanitation contributes to economic growth. For each $1 invested, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates returns of $3 – $34, depending on the region and technology

And, of course, there is the impact on the environment.  70% of the Earth is covered by water BUT less than 1% of the world’s fresh water (or about 0.007% of all water on earth) is readily accessible for direct human use.

More than 80% of sewage in developing countries is discharged untreated, polluting rivers, lakes and coastal areas

The UN estimates that by 2025, forty-eight nations, with combined population of 2.8 billion, will face freshwater “stress” or “scarcity”.

Agriculture is the largest consumer of freshwater by far: about 70% of all freshwater withdrawals go to irrigated agriculture.


At home the average American uses between 100 and 175 gallons of water a day. That is less than 25 years ago, but it does not include the amount of water used to feed and clothe us. Conserving water helps not only to preserve irreplaceable natural resources, but also to reduce the strain on urban wastewater management systems. Wastewater is costly to treat, and requires continuous investment to ensure that the water we return to our waterways is as clean as possible.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/waterdotorg/

I like the Water.org philosophy that people in developing countries know best how to solve their own problems. They forge partnerships with carefully-screened partner organizations in the target countries that understand, and are part of, the local culture.The result is a solution tailored to the need of each community, instead of a technological fix the community has no way of maintaining.

Locally-based partners are better positioned to understand and navigate social, political, and economic issues impacting projects. They are more savvy at leveraging local financial resources for cost-sharing in projects. Using local expertise to implement projects is more cost effective than maintaining expatriate staff.

Help the efforts of water.org at DONATE.water.org

With each purchase of a limited edition Water.org CamelBak Groove bottle, you give a life-changing gift. While it keeps great-tasting filtered water always in your reach, it also brings safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries. $10 from every bottle purchased supports Water.org   The bottle is 100% BPA-free, holds 20 oz, is dishwasher safe, and features the patented CamelBak Big Bite Valve.

NJ Passes Clean Water Bills

Fishing at Island Beach State Park (NJDEP)

The NJ Legislature passed a bill yesterday giving New Jersey the most restrictive standards on fertilizer in the nation.

The bill, which Governor Christie has already pledged to sign, is designed to reduce the amount of nitrogen that can wash into the state’s bays, lakes and rivers.

It restricts the nitrogen content of fertilizers and also sets limits on when homeowners and contractors can spread fertilizer on lawns. Unfortunately, golf courses are exempt from the new rules.

A package of other bills related to Barnegat Bay also passed the Assembly and should come up for a state Senate vote next Monday, sponsors say.

A compromise (after more than a year of negotiations) led to the requirement that all fertilizers contain at least 20 percent slow-release nitrogen. 30 percent was desired by environmental groups and 15 percent was the amount set by fertilizer manufacturer Scotts Miracle-Gro and Rutgers turf-grass experts.

Nitrogen is the focus because it often gets washed by rains into the state’s bays and other water bodies. It provides nutrients for algae and other aquatic plants that can grow so quickly they reduce oxygen levels in the water, threatening fish and other wildlife.

The heaviest blooms also cut off sunlight to the sea grasses that provide protective habitat to marine animals and prevent marsh erosion.

This growth can also hinder recreational boating and swimming in some waters.

How does it affect you directly?

Homeowners will be banned from applying fertilizer between Nov. 15 and March 1 and whenever the ground is frozen. In a similar vein, fertilizer can’t be used within 10 feet of any water body or just before a heavy rainfall. Professionals will be barred from applying fertilizer between Dec. 1 and March 1.

The legislation also bans the use of phosphorus in fertilizer to protect fresh water bodies such as lakes and streams. Some fertilizer manufacturers already have products that meet or exceed the standards set by the legislation.Those that do not will have one year from the bill’s implementation to comply.

The New Jersey Sierra Club applauded the legislation and noted its importance in protecting drinking water and the coastal tourism industry.

Water, Water Everywhere and Yet

I missed Blog Action Day this year (it was last week) when bloggers were asked to post about this year's topic of concern: water. But I did see a good number of posts and here are some links culled from them.

Water as a Human Right: In July, the United Nations declared access to clean water and sanitation a human right over objection from the United States. Today, nearly one billion people lack basic access to safe drinking water. More Info »

Women: In Africa, women are predominantly responsible for collecting water. They walk over 40 billion hours each year carrying cisterns weighing up to 40 pounds to gather water for their community, which is usually still not safe to drink. More Info »

Polluted Oceans: Not only is pollution bad for the environment, it’s also expensive! Death and disease caused by polluted coastal waters costs the global economy $12.8 billion a year. More Info »



Uninhabitable Rivers: Today, 40% of America’s rivers and 46% of America’s lakes are too polluted for fishing, swimming, or aquatic life. That’s not surprising considering the fact that 1.2 trillion gallons of untreated sewage, storm water, and industrial waste are discharged into US waters annually. More Info »

Food Footprint: Do you know the water footprint of your food? For example, 75 liters of water are required to make a glass of beer and 15,500 liters to make a kilogram of beef. More Info »

Water Wars: Many scholar, researchers and political analysts attribute the conflict in Darfur at least in part to lack of access to water. In fact, a report commissioned by the UN Development Program found that in the 21st century, water scarcity will become one of the leading causes of conflict in Africa. More Info »

Technology Footprint: On an average day, 500 billion liters of water travel through US power plants to power all the technology that we use every day. For example, that shiny new iPhone in your pocket requires half a liter of water to charge. That may not seem like much, but with approximately 6.4 million active iPhones in the US, that’s 3.2 million liters to charge those alone. More Info »

Bottled Water: Even though people in the US have access to clean water from their taps, they drink an average of 200 bottles of water per person each year. Over 17 million barrels of oil are needed to manufacture those water bottles, 86 percent of which will never be recycled. More Info »

Farmers vs. Animals: As water becomes scarcer in Africa, farmers not only compete with each other but also with other animals, including elephants. Forced into close contact with farmers, elephants destroy crops and wreak havoc on agriculture, causing farmers in turn to resort to violence in order to protect their crops and water sources. More Info »

Children: Every week, nearly 38,000 children under the age of 5 die from unsafe drinking water and unhygienic living conditions. More Info »

Fashion Footprint: That cotton t-shirt you’re wearing right now took 400 gallons of water to produce, and your jeans required an extra 1800 gallons. Not wearing cotton? The dyes and synthetic fibers used to make your clothes create waste that’s among the many contributors to water pollution. More Info »

Water Celebrities: A number of celebrities have taken up the cause of water and water rights, including Matt Damon , Adrian Grenier , Leonardo DiCaprio , and Will & Jada Smith .

Blog Action Day and Water

Blog Action Day 2010: Water from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.
Join the global conversation around water on October 15th.

http://blogactionday.change.org

Blog Action Day 2010 Is All About Water

Blog Action Day is an annual event held every October 15 that unites the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking a global discussion and driving collective action.

Last year, Blog Action Day included influential voices ranging from the White House to former Prime Minister Gordon Brown. This year, we're looking forward to an even larger group of influential voices, from celebrities to politicians, to help widen the scope of our conversation.

The topic for Blog Action Day 2010 is water.

Right now, almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean, safe drinking water. That’s one in eight of us who are subject to preventable disease and even death because of something that many of us take for granted.

Access to clean water is not just a human rights issue. It’s an environmental issue. An animal welfare issue. A sustainability issue. Water is a global issue, and it affects all of us.

You don't need to be a water expert to participate — you just have to be interested in joining thousands of other bloggers from more than 100 countries in collectively raising awareness of one of the most important issues facing our world.

If you are a blogger, register today and help kick-off Blog Action Day 2010.

http://blogactionday.change.org

Petitions by Change.org|Start a Petition »

Sampling a Stream

Here's a video of a NJ DEP Division of Fish and Wildlife biologist entitled, "Electrofishing a Small Tributary to the South Branch of the Raritan River".

The video follows division biologist Shawn Crouse as he and a team of co-workers sample a 150-meter segment of stream for fish. The technique uses a backpack battery unit and hand held probe to deliver electrical current into the water. Fish near the probe will feel the electrical shock and temporarily lose muscle control. Workers with nets can then collect the fish more easily for the study before they are returned to the water.

The species being targeted are trout since they are an excellent indicator of the health and condition of a stream. The findings of such studies help determine stream classifications, which can influence land-use decisions, in addition to providing valuable biological data for fisheries managers.

Scientists study fish to help determine the health of area streams

To view the video, visit
http://videos.nj.com/star-ledger/2009/09/scientists_study_fish_to_help.html on the NJ.com website.

Passaic River Restoration

Cleaning the riverside of the Passaic River at Lyndhurst. Photo via http://www.pvsc.com

In order to protect and preserve local streams and rivers from water pollution, the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners (PVSC) operate one of the country's largest treatment plants for the wastewaters of northern New Jersey.

In 1998, they created the Passaic River/Newark Bay Restoration Program to promote the recreational and economic uses of Newark Bay, the Passaic River and its tributaries. The Program is comprised of three elements: shoreline clean-ups, floatables removal, and "in-house" clean-ups.

The shoreline clean-up element has been among the most successful programs of its kind in the nation. Beginning in 1998, PVSC began assisting volunteer groups in conducting shoreline clean-ups to remove litter and other debris from along waterways within its service area.

In 2000, PVSC created a department of 15 full-time personnel to conduct larger shoreline clean-ups in addition to those organized by volunteer groups and community agencies. To date, PVSC's Restoration Program has conducted or assisted volunteers in more than 250 shoreline clean-ups that have removed over 1,000 tons of litter and debris from area shorelines.

In 1999, PVSC added floatables removal to the Program, after using state grant monies to purchase an innovative 50-foot surface skimmer vessel. Christened the S.V. Newark Bay, this vessel embarks on daily patrols on the Newark Bay and Passaic River, removing floating debris and litter. In 2001, PVSC added a second, smaller skimmer vessel to its clean-up arsenal, this one to conduct daily patrols in shallow water that had been inaccessible to the larger vessels.

Finally, PVSC conducts "in-house" riverbank clean-ups using the services of its employees. These projects are in response to requests for assistance from local municipal leaders. The crew is deployed to clean and restore specific problem areas within the PVSC service area. The success of the program can be demonstrated in its numbers. Since 1998, PVSC has removed 650 tons of floating matter and over 2,000 tons of shoreline debris.


Want to organize a shoreline clean-up? Contact Bob DeVita, River Restoration Program Manager, at (973) 466-2714.

for more information   http://www.pvsc.com/rr/