GSWA Protecting Water Through Land Conservation

Harding Township — As part of its environmental stewardship goals, the Great Swamp Watershed Association (GSWA) manages a permanently preserved 50-acre parcel of riparian forest on Tiger Lily Lane in Harding Township known as the Conservation Management Area (CMA). The property, available to the public for passive recreation, is part of a developing open space greenway surrounding feeder streams to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and other preserved lands.

The CMA contains critical wetlands, vernal pools, forested areas, and a significant portion of Silver Brook (a feeder stream to the Passaic River), and is home to several state and federally designated threatened species, including wood turtle and barred owl.

According to Hazel England, GSWA’s Land Steward, “Our primary goal for the CMA is to restore the property to a diverse ecologically functioning state.” Restoration projects undertaken to date include 15+ acres of invasive plant species control, installation of 23 acres of deer exclosure fencing, enhancement of vernal pool habitat, stream bank stabilization and replenishment, the replanting of over 2,000 native shrubs and 4,500 live stakes, and construction of an observation deck.

Other goals for the CMA include improved public access and increased use of the property as an educational and demonstration site for volunteer-led restoration efforts as well as academic study and fieldwork. To facilitate these goals, one and one-half miles of trails across the site are undergoing expansion and access improvements, such as boardwalk construction over wet areas.

To ensure proper land management, the organization relies almost entirely on volunteers, including a dedicated team who monitors site conditions throughout the year along with seasonal work performed by volunteers from local universities and civic groups. In addition, GSWA has established relationships with a growing number of corporations and local businesses, including Goldman Sachs, Verizon, Pfizer, Ethicon, Mars and Eisner to schedule employee workdays at the CMA as part of their community give-back programs.

The organization’s land management staff and volunteers continue to identify restoration and maintenance projects that support GSWA’s goals for the CMA. Planned work activities in the next year include 300 new feet of boardwalk and installation of an additional six acres of deer exclosure fencing to surround the newly restored marsh, allowing GSWA to replenish native shrubs in the area.

Great Swamp Watershed Association was founded in 1981 by a group of dedicated local residents, many of whom provided the energy behind the grassroots campaign that defeated the Port Authority plans in the 1960s to build a jetport in the area since designated as the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Today, GSWA is a member-supported nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and improving water resources in the 36,000-acre watershed region by monitoring local streams, advocating for intelligent land use, and educating our communities about water quality and quantity and their effect on the health and natural beauty of the local environment.

GSWA hosts a number of family-oriented educational programs at the CMA, including the upcoming “Secret Places of the Watershed – A Natural History Hike,” which will be held on Sunday, June 13, 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. This program is free for members. The cost for non-members is $10 per adult, $5 for each child five and over, and $30 per family. To register, call GSWA’s Event Info line at 973-538-3500 x22 or visit www.greatswamp.org.

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Founded in 1981, the Great Swamp Watershed Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and protecting the water and land of the 36,000-acre watershed region in Morris and Somerset counties. The organization works to maintain the beauty and health of open space, and to monitor and protect five streams: Loantaka Brook, Great Brook, Primrose Brook, Black Brook, and the Upper Passaic — which feed into the Passaic River and providing drinking water to more than a million people.
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