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Loantaka Brook is a tributary of the Passaic River in New Jersey in the United States.
The main headwaters of Loantaka Brook arise in Morris Township between Route 124 (Madison Avenue) and Woodland Avenue in the area just below the medical office parks on the south side of Madison Avenue (see map). This primary headwaters stem flows just south of the Parsons Village apartment complex and to the west of the Woodland Elementary School. After passing the school it crosses Woodland Avenue between the Ginty playing fields and the Morris Township municipal buildings and police department and then makes its way past the Woodland Sewage treatment plant. A second, smaller stem arises to the south and west of Friendly’s on Madison Avenue, where it makes its way through a culvert and down along a stretch of garden apartments before joining the first stem near the elementary school.
A second headwater tributary of Loantaka arises near South Street in Morris Township behind the Nortel Networks offices. This tributary flows across South Street into the Loantaka Brook Reservation on the south side of the ballfield at the Reservation entrance. This tributary joins the main stem below the Woodland Water Treatment plant.
Below the confluence of the two stems, the brook has been dammed to form Kitchell Pond. After leaving the pond, the stream flows roughly three miles through the 574-acre (2.32 km2) Loantaka Brook Reservation, where it then joins the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge . This linear park, one of the most heavily used of all of the Morris County parks, offers numerous recreational opportunities, from running and rollerblading to cycling and horseback riding. The brook is visible along much of the Reservation's paved and unpaved paths, offering passersby a glimpse into its current conditions and, hopefully, at the remediation efforts to repair the stream in the future.
Despite (or perhaps in part because of) its popularity, Loantaka Brook is the most degraded stream in the watershed, meeting none of the Ten Towns Committee’s June 2002 standards. The reasons for this impairment are two-fold, arising from non-point source pollution and excessive water volume in the stream channel.
To address the first issue, the Great Swamp Watershed Association, under its Adopt-A-Stream program, has begun testing Loantaka Brook to determine the sources and types of pollutants that enter the brook upstream. Designed to supplement the ongoing stream monitoring, the program tests for the presence of Total dissolved solids (TDS); (b) E. coli contaminants; and (c) nutrients (phosphorus and nitrates) and sedimentation, as indicated by the presence of Total suspended solids (TSS). Information gained from Loantaka’s plight will help project staff in designing a remediation program for the stream, which in turn will serve as a pilot for adopting Great Swamp’s other streams.
Excess water volume in Loantaka further impacts its health. The Woodland Water Treatment Plant upstream of Kitchell Pond alters Loantaka by discharging thousands of gallons of treated effluent into the stream every day. A discharge at such levels scours the stream's banks, eroding sand and undercutting streamside vegetation and trees. In addition, hundreds of storm drains located throughout residential and commercial developments transport stormwater runoff directly to the stream. The combination of effluent from the sewage treatment plant and excessive stormwater impairs water quality downstream because silt and sediments block sunlight and increase turbidity. Excess water volume also widens the stream and makes it shallower, raising water temperatures and making it impossible for certain native species to flourish. Loantaka has, in fact, the lowest species concentration of any of Great Swamp’s streams. Together with other organizations, the GSWA may be able to work to remediate the negative effects of such discharge into Loantaka, thereby elevating the health of the stream and revitalizing this crucial Great Swamp tributary.
Loantaka Brook joins Great Brook at the edge of the parking lot at the end of Woodland Road in the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.
The Passaic River is a river, approximately 80 miles (130 km) long, in Northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburban northern New Jersey, called the Great Swamp, draining much of the northern portion of the state through its tributaries.
An outfall is the discharge point of a waste stream into a body of water; alternatively it may be the outlet of a river, drain or a sewer where it discharges into the sea, a lake or ocean.
Foudry Brook is a small stream in southern England. It rises from a number of springs near the Hampshire village of Baughurst, and flows to the east and then the north, to join the River Kennet to the south of Reading. The upper section is called Silchester Brook, and beyond that, Bishop's Wood Stream. The underlying geology is chalk, covered by a layer of clay, and so it has the characteristics of a clay stream, experiencing rapid increases in level after heavy rain due to run-off from the surrounding land. It passes a number of listed buildings and scheduled monuments, including the site of the Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum or Silchester.
The River Crane, a tributary of the River Thames, runs 8.5 miles (13.6 km) in West London, England. It forms the lower course of Yeading Brook. It adjoins or passes through three London boroughs: Hillingdon, Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames, in the historic county of Middlesex. The drainage basin is heavily urbanised but many of the Hayes to Whitton flood-meadows have been conserved, forming a narrow, green vale, opening out to what remains of Hounslow Heath in the centre – a near-continuous belt of semi-natural habitat.
Effluent is wastewater from sewers or industrial outfalls that flows directly into surface waters, either untreated or after being treated at a facility. The term has slightly different meanings in certain contexts, and may contain various pollutants depending on the source.
Alewife Brook Reservation is a Massachusetts state park and urban wild located in Cambridge, Arlington, and Somerville. The park is managed by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation and was established in 1900. It is named for Alewife Brook, which was also historically known as Menotomy River, a tributary of the Mystic River.
The Great Swamp Watershed Association is a member-based, non-profit, 501(c)(3) conservation organization dedicated to preserving and protecting water and natural areas. Their programs serve all who live, work, or play in the Great Swamp watershed in Morris County, New Jersey. For over 40 years the association has been acting on behalf of local communities to ensure that water is safe and pure and open space is protected.
Water pollution in New Zealand is an increasing concern for those who use and care for waterways and for New Zealand regulatory bodies. An increase in population is linked to an increase in water pollution, due to a range of causes such as rural land use, industrial use and urban development. Fresh water quality is under pressure from agriculture, hydropower, urban development, pest invasions and climate change. While pollution from point sources has been reduced, diffuse pollution such as nutrients, pathogens and sediments development and from stormwater in towns is not under control. There are more than 800 water quality monitoring sites around New Zealand that are regularly sampled.
Water pollution is an environmental issue on the West Coast of New Zealand. Water resources and water pollution come under the jurisdiction of the Resource Management Act and is controlled by the regional councils - for the West Coast it is the West Coast Regional Council.
Stony Brook is a 8.5-mile (13.7 km)-long subterranean river in Boston. The largest tributary stream of the lower Charles River, it runs mostly through conduits. Stony Brook originates at Turtle Pond in the Stony Brook Reservation and flows through Hyde Park, Roslindale, Jamaica Plain, and Roxbury. It empties into the Charles River Basin just upstream of the Harvard Bridge. Stony Brook is fed by four tributaries, all of which are partially or entirely in conduits as well.
The Loantaka Brook Reservation is a nature reserve and public park in the American state of New Jersey in Morris County. It consists of five miles of nature trails for jogging, hiking, and biking. Seaton Hackney Stables, owned and operated by the Morris County Park Commission, offers horseback riding at an adjacent property with trail riding along a long and narrow corridor near the Loantaka Brook. It has four distinct areas including the South Street recreation facilities, the Seaton Hackney Stables, the Loantaka Brook area at Kitchell Road, and the Loantaka Way Trail.
Spring Brook is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Lackawanna County and Luzerne County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 17 miles (27 km) long and flows through Covington Township, Spring Brook Township, and Moosic in Lackawanna County and Pittston Township in Luzerne County. The watershed of the stream has an area of 57.2 square miles (148 km2). It is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery above Interstate 476 and as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery below it. A section is also designated as Class A Wild Trout Waters. The stream's tributaries include Panther Creek, Plank Bridge Creek, Rattlesnake Creek, Green Run, Monument Creek, and Covey Swamp Creek. It has a relatively high level of water quality and is very slightly acidic, with a pH of 6.4 to 6.9.
Stafford Meadow Brook is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 11.2 miles (18.0 km) long and flows through Roaring Brook Township, Scranton, and Moosic. The watershed of the stream has an area of 14.1 square miles (37 km2). Part of it is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. The other part is a Warmwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. The stream has one named tributary, which is known as Mountain Lake Run. Stafford Meadow Brook has a very high level of water quality for much of its length and part of it meets the criteria for an Exceptional Value designation. The stream begins on the Pocono Plateau and flows through the Moosic Mountains in a mountainous watershed. Its channel has been substantially altered in its lower reaches.
Roaring Brook is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 21 miles (34 km) long and flows through Covington Township, Madison Township, Moscow, Roaring Brook Township, Elmhurst Township, Dunmore, and Scranton. The watershed of the stream has an area of 56.3 square miles (146 km2). Its named tributaries include Little Roaring Brook, Rock Bottom Creek, White Oak Run, Van Brunt Creek, Bear Brook, and East Branch Roaring Brook. It has a high level of water quality for much of its length. However, it is affected by abandoned mining land, stormwater, and other impacts in its lower reaches. Reservoirs in the watershed include the Hollister Reservoir, the Elmhurst Reservoir, and others. The stream also flows through the Nay Aug Gorge and passes over the Nay Aug Falls, which are on the National Register of Geologic Landmarks. It flows through a concrete channel in its lower reaches. The topography of the watershed contains rolling hills in its upper reaches and the mountainous land of the Moosic Mountains in its lower reaches.
Leggetts Creek is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 9.0 miles (14.5 km) long and flows through Scott Township, South Abington Township, and Scranton. The watershed of the creek has an area of 18.5 square miles (48 km2). The creek has three named tributaries: Leach Creek, Clover Hill Creek, and Summit Lake Creek. Leggetts Creek is considered to be impaired due to urban development problems, but is not affected by acid mine drainage. The creek is fairly alkaline and is a perennial stream. Its headwaters are in wetlands outside of the Lackawanna Valley and it flows through a water gap known as Leggetts Gap or The Notch. Major lakes in the watershed include the Griffin Reservoir, Summit Lake, and Maple Lake. The creek is a source of flooding in South Abington Township.
Leach Creek is a tributary of Leggetts Creek in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 1.9 miles (3.1 km) long and flows through Scranton. The watershed of the creek has an area of 2.55 square miles (6.6 km2). The creek loses substantial amounts of water to underground mine pools. The creek is in the Coal Region and has been channelized and/or culvertized in some reaches. It flows alongside Pennsylvania Route 307 for a substantial part of its length. The creek has a riparian buffer in its upper and middle reaches, but various invasive plants grow along its banks in its lower reaches.
Swale Brook is a tributary of Tunkhannock Creek in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 2.9 miles (4.7 km) long and flows through Tunkhannock Township and Tunkhannock. The watershed of the stream has an area of 4.01 square miles (10.4 km2). The stream is not designated as an impaired waterbody. The surficial geology near it consists of alluvium, alluvial terrace, Wisconsinan Outwash, Wisconsinan Till, Wisconsinan Ice-Contact Stratified Drift, fill, and a wetland.
Ackerly Creek is a tributary of South Branch Tunkhannock Creek in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 8.7 miles (14.0 km) long and flows through South Abington Township, Waverly Township, Glenburn Township, Dalton, and La Plume Township. The creek has several unnamed tributaries and drains an area of nearly 18 square miles (47 km2). Ackerly Creek is not designated as an impaired waterbody, but it is impacted by some water quality problems. In one reach, the creek flows through Rabbit Hollow, which is set aside as a preserve. The creek experiences some erosion due to its banks being managed and straightened where it flows alongside US Route 6 and US Route 11.
Black Run is a tributary of the West Branch Susquehanna River in Lycoming County and Union County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 3.6 miles (5.8 km) long and flows through Brady Township in Lycoming County and Gregg Township in Union County. The watershed of the stream has an area of 5.87 square miles (15.2 km2). The stream is not designated as an impaired waterbody. It is a relatively small stream with its mouth located near Montgomery. The stream's watershed is designated as a Warmwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery.
Barkham Brook is a small river in the English county of Berkshire. It has sources to the north and west of Finchampstead in the Wokingham Borough, flows past the village of Barkham, and joins the River Loddon to the west of Winnersh.