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The Passaic River Coalition (PRC) is an organization based out of Willow Hall in Morristown, New Jersey. [1] The coalition is an urban watershed association active since 1969 in protecting water quality and quantity of the entire Passaic River watershed of northern New Jersey and Rockland and Orange Counties, New York. [2]
Established in 1969 and incorporated in 1972, the Passaic River Coalition has given valuable assistance and stewardship for the preservation and protection of over 1,000 miles of waterways. [1] The organization has faced the challenges of a watershed beset with every conceivable environmental problem. The coalition has been involved in many topics including: [3]
In 1993, a major land trust endowment was made to the PRC to providing funding for land acquisition. [4] With funding from the endowment and matching payments from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the PRC has now preserved over 1,000 acres of open space. [4] In addition to land preservation, the PRC does riverside conservation, riverfront parks, trail construction, and the creation of urban park recreation. [4]
For many decades, two things have been certain in the Passaic River Basin - floods and flood studies. Actual progress has been less certain. The Passaic River Coalition was formed in 1969 to address this issue and has been a major force ever since, both fending off harmful ideas and promoting effective measures to reduce flood damages without destroying the very resources we are trying to protect.
The Passaic River Basin has a long history of floods. The current record flood was in 1903, when much of the basin was undeveloped but also had been subject to massive deforestation. Major floods have occurred in 1902, 1945, 1968, 1977, 1984, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2010, and 2011.
Between the State and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), we have over a century of flood control studies. At various times, dry flood-storage reservoirs, dual-purpose reservoirs (for both flood control and water supply), river channelization, levees, dikes and tunnels have been proposed. Eventually, non-structural concepts were introduced, such as land preservation and floodplain development controls, but it took decades for these ideas to get far.
In the late 1960s, a Corps plan (called Plan III) included large dams and reservoirs; it was that plan that triggered creation of the PRC. Problems with that plan led to Plan II-B, which led to Congressional requirements in 1976 for new studies. Right after the major flood of 1984, the state endorsed The Pompton/Passaic Dual Inlet Tunnel Diversion Plan. After lengthy debate in which the PRC played a prominent role, in 1996 Governor Whitman removed State support for this project, and the federal Water Resources Development Act of 2000 prohibited design and construction funding for the flood control tunnel. Still, the project remains authorized. Most recently, in 2011 the Corps was asked by New Jersey to reevaluate six mainstem alternatives, in response to the Passaic River Basin Flood Advisory Commission. The Corps found that three may remain economically justified, though all are very expensive and New Jersey would need to pay 35 percent:
Late this year, the Corps anticipates submitting a new evaluation to New Jersey for review. The Corps also plans to provide new reports on the lower portion of the tidal Passaic (addressing storm surge issues in Kearny, Harrison and Newark), and in the Lower Saddle River. In other words, Passaic Basin interests will need to engage with three major Corps reports very soon.
Meanwhile, some smaller-scale projects have been completed by the Corps, including Molly Ann Brook in Passaic County, the Ramapo River flood control project, and wetlands purchases. The state has also been active, with improved controls over wetlands and flood plain development, and land preservation (with help from many others). The latter includes the acquisition of houses with repetitive flood damages (Blue Acres), where the houses are torn down and the land dedicated to riverside park lands. Morris County has also helped fund such work, notably in Pequannock Township, and the Passaic River Coalition has been active in Little Falls Township.
Since the Land Trust's creation in 1993, the PRC has acquired 20 properties in 6 counties (Passaic, Morris, Bergen, Essex, Sussex, and Somerset), 20 municipalities, and a total of almost 900 acres. [4] The properties are:
The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for 282 miles (454 km) along the borders of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, before emptying into Delaware Bay.
Ringwood is a borough in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 11,735, a decrease of 493 (−4.0%) from the 2010 census count of 12,228, which in turn reflected a decrease of 168 (−1.4%) from the 12,396 counted in the 2000 census.
West Milford is a township in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 24,862, a decrease of 988 (−3.8%) from the 2010 census count of 25,850, which in turn reflected a decline of 560 (−2.1%) from the 26,410 counted in the 2000 census. It is the largest in the county by total area, covering 80.32 square miles (208.0 km2) and more than 40% of the county.
The Raritan River is a major river of New Jersey. Its watershed drains much of the mountainous area of the central part of the state, emptying into the Raritan Bay on the Atlantic Ocean.
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.
Lake Passaic was a prehistoric proglacial lake that existed in northern New Jersey in the United States at the end of the last ice age approximately 19,000–14,000 years ago. The lake was formed of waters released by the retreating Wisconsin Glacier, which had pushed large quantities of earth and rock ahead of its advance, blocking the previous natural drainage of the ancestral Passaic River through a gap in the central Watchung Mountains. The lake persisted for several thousand years as melting ice and eroding moraine dams slowly drained the former lake basin. The effect of the lake's creation permanently altered the course of the Passaic River, forcing it to take a circuitous route through the northern Watchung Mountains before spilling out into the lower piedmont.
The Hackensack River is a river, approximately 45 miles (72 km) long, in the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, emptying into Newark Bay, a back chamber of New York Harbor. The watershed of the river includes part of the suburban area outside New York City just west of the lower Hudson River, which it roughly parallels, separated from it by the New Jersey Palisades. It also flows through and drains the New Jersey Meadowlands. The lower river, which is navigable as far as the city of Hackensack, is heavily industrialized and forms a commercial extension of Newark Bay.
The Rahway River is a river in Essex, Middlesex, and Union Counties, New Jersey, United States, The Rahway, along with the Elizabeth River, Piles Creek, Passaic River, Morses Creek, the Fresh Kills River, has its river mouth at the Arthur Kill.
Berry's Creek is a tributary of the Hackensack River in the New Jersey Meadowlands in Bergen County, New Jersey. The creek watershed contains a diverse array of wetlands, marshes, and wildlife. The creek runs through a densely populated region and has been subject to extensive industrial pollution during the 19th and 20th centuries. Several companies discharged toxic chemicals into the creek in the 20th century, and these chemicals have remained in the sediment. The creek has the highest concentrations of methyl mercury of any fresh-water sediment in the world. Portions of the creek watershed are Superfund sites and cleanup projects began in the late 20th century.
Ringwood Manor, located in Passaic County, New Jersey, was the site of an ironworks and home to a number of well-known ironmasters from the 1740s to the late 19th century. The current manor house was not built until 1807.
The Green Brook Flood Control Project is a flood control project in Somerset County in central New Jersey first proposed in the early 1970s in the wake of two major flooding events: a 1971 flood event and a major 1973 flood which ravaged the Green Brook and Raritan River basins, causing millions in property damage and several deaths in central New Jersey.
The Skylands Region is a region of New Jersey located in the northern and central parts of the state. It is one of six tourism regions established by the New Jersey State Department of Tourism; the others are Gateway Region, Greater Atlantic City Region, the Southern Shore Region, the Delaware River Region, and the Shore Region.
The Peckman River is a tributary of the Passaic River in Essex and Passaic Counties, New Jersey in the United States.
The Passaic River Flood Tunnel is a proposal for a flood relief tunnel from the central portion of the Passaic River basin in Passaic County, New Jersey in an area where a number of large tributary rivers join the Passaic River and severe flooding occasionally occurs. The tunnel would provide relief to an area that experiences severe flooding events which cause tens of millions in property damage and disruption to lives. The tunnel would stretch from the Wayne, New Jersey area to Newark Bay, a distance of approximately twenty miles.
The Millers River is a 52.1-mile-long (83.8 km) river in northern Massachusetts, originating in Ashburnham and joining the Connecticut River just downstream from Millers Falls, Massachusetts. Sections of the river are used for whitewater kayaking, and a section upriver is popular with flatwater racers, and the river is known locally as a good place for pike fishing.
The Water Resources Development Act of 2000, Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law 106–541 (text)(PDF), was enacted by Congress of the United States on December 11, 2000. Most of the provisions of WRDA 2000 are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
The Charles River Natural Valley Storage Area comprises over 8,000 acres (3,200 ha) of protected land in the middle and upper watershed of the Charles River in eastern Massachusetts in the United States. The lands were acquired by the United States Army Corps of Engineers and are managed by the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. The project's field office is located at West Hill Dam.
The Clinton Furnace, also known as the Clinton Ironworks, is located along Clinton Road at the base of the Clinton Reservoir by the Clinton Brook in the township of West Milford in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. The furnace was built in 1826 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 18, 1976, for its significance in industry. The furnace is the last surviving structure of the iron community once known as Clinton.
Little Nescopeck Creek is a tributary of Nescopeck Creek in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 8.5 miles (13.7 km) long and flows through Butler Township, Sugarloaf Township, and Conyngham. The watershed of the creek has an area of 14.0 square miles (36 km2). The creek is acidic and receives mine water from the Jeddo Tunnel. The main rock formation in the watershed is the Mauch Chunk Formation. However, the Pottsville Formation also appears in some areas. Soil series in the drainage basin include the Arnot Series, the Basher Series, and various other soil types.
