Spring Brings Membership Drive to Watershed Association

Every spring the flowers bloom, trees grow new leaves, the weather gets warm, we celebrate our local resources with "Do the Swamp Thing," and the Great Swamp Watershed Association holds a membership drive in order to continue its environmental programs. For more than 20 years the Watershed Association has been helping protect the places you love and the water you drink.

According to Robert Blanchard, Board Chair, "With the support of our 2,500 members we have preserved more than 106 acres as permanent open space; developed a conservation area in Harding Township in which local natural habitats are explored and tested; published and implemented an comprehensive greenway and open space plan helping communities identify critical land to be preserved; provide educational support to members of local governments, Planning and Zoning Boards, as well as Environmental Commissions, produce and distribute educational videos, provide continuing environmental education to area teachers; and take a working watershed model into area schools and teach school children what a watershed is, how people impact the environment, and how each of us can make a difference.

The Watershed Association has established a comprehensive water quality and quantity monitoring program to help protect our drinking water. Stream monitoring stations have been installed in each of the five tributaries to the Great Swamp. Devices at each station monitor the flow of water into the swamp and collect water samples during rainstorms, which are then tested for pollutants. We have also created the first Adopt-A-Stream program, utilizing corporate support to identify and measure the level of pollutants in Loantaka Brook (the most polluted of the five streams flowing into Great Swamp), and identify strategies to reduce pollution. As funding allows, the program will be expanded to restore Loantaka Brook to healthier conditions and include the other streams in the watershed."

Julia Somers, Executive Director said, "Although our work is dedicated to protecting the environment, educating the public, and preserving our quality of life, it's people that really make the difference. The Watershed Association relies strongly on membership dues and contributions for financial support. Our members span ten towns and two counties, but are only a tiny fraction of the population. We need a strong response to this campaign in order to continue to help preserve open space, protect animal habitats, and serve as environmental advocates before local planning and zoning boards. Please become one of the people who make a difference and join today."

For more information about becoming a member, stream monitoring, the conservation area, "Do the Swamp Thing, and other programs, visit their website at www.greatswamp.org., or call (973) 966-1900. 

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