SECTION 319(H) SUCCESS STORIES

	Belcher's Creek
	Mary Jane Pond

Belcher's Creek
West Milford, New Jersey
Watershed Management Area 3

The Township of West Milford received a 319(h) grant in 1999 for $90,000 to achieve water quality improvements through nonpoint source pollution abatement, provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. The Township of West Milford provided an in-kind match of $94,220, focusing on maintenance and education.

This grant had three main components: stormwater retrofits for storm drain catch basins in the Pinecliff Lake area, macroinvertebrate monitoring and analysis, and public education and outreach regarding the issue of nonpoint source pollution in Belcher Creek Corridor. The West Milford Engineering Department and Public Works Division designed sedimentation basins to capture increased amounts of sediment. This design was conducted for the purpose of capturing increased amounts of sediment that would have otherwise entered Pinecliff Lake through stormwater runoff. Sediment carried in by stormwater has two negative functions, carrying in nutrients and also increasing the rate of sedimentation in lakes. Nineteen sedimentation basins were installed and in six locations cross-drains were also installed connecting two sedimentation basins further increasing the drains' capacity to capture sediment from stormwater runoff. The estimated sediment removal is 2,452 ft3/yr based on the capacity of the stormdrains and the volume removed. Each sedimentation basin can hold approximately 1.1 yd3 and each cross-drain can hold 7.1 yd3.

Water quality monitoring of the macroinvertebrate community was performed by Allied Biological to provide an understanding of the overall water quality of Belcher's Creek. The sampling was conducted for four years (2000-2003) at four sampling locations. Water samples for chemical parameters were collected at each site. The parameters included Total Phosphorus, Biochemical Oxygen Demand, Total Dissolved Solids, Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen, Fecal Coliform Bacteria and Total Suspended Solids. At each sampling location the macroinvertebrate community was evaluated based on: taxa richness; number of EPT taxa; Percent EPT; Percent Dominance; Family Biotic Index; Rapid Bioassessment Score; a Shannon-Weaver diversity Index was calculated along with a Normalized H'. All sites improved in their overall biological integrity since spring 2002, except BC04. Pinecliff Lake was lowered while repair work was completed on Pinecliff Lake Dam and the corresponding erratic discharge, and probable increase in sediment to the downstream BC04 site were listed as probable causes to the reduced water quality indicated by the macroinvertebrate community (Allied Biological 2003).

A total of 340 hours have been devoted to one component of the education part of the project. The High School Environmental Club (20 students) along with Chemistry classes (20 students) and faculty have set up monitoring for 20 sites. A website has been developed which allows the uploading of all the data. The High School faculty will continue to include this monitoring, which will provide information for both the students and township along with other interested parties. The information can be found at www.gismpa.us/wmilford. The data is also being incorporated into the Township's GIS database. Other significant educational components include working in coordination with the Township Planning Board Master Plan Subcommittee to assist the Planning Board in the preparation of a new Master Plan. This plan incorporates water quality as a goal of the Master Plan. The Environmental Commission also maintains a website for the purpose of disseminating information on environmental issues. The Commission has public information regarding the importance of septic maintenance on water quality (www.westmilford.org). There have been yearly presentations to the science classes from elementary to high school. Overall, there has been a significant effort to provide the residents of the town with important nonpoint source information since 1999.

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Mary Jane Pond
Linwood, New Jersey
Watershed Management Area 15

The Mary Jane Pond Restoration Project was successfully completed as a result of the combined efforts of the Mary Jane Pond Restoration Citizens Group; the City Council of the City of Linwood; the City of Linwood Board of Education; and the NJDEP Division of Watershed Management. A Diagnostic Feasibility Study was commissioned and paid for by the City Council. The study was undertaken by Environmental Consultant, Francis Pandullo.

Pre-Restoration view of pond with adjoining residence	Pre-Restoration view of pond with sediment in the foreground
Pre-Restoration view of pond with sediment in the foreground	Dredging Operation

The study concluded that the pond was impacted by stormwater runoff from an upstream detention basin on the Seaview School Property and the upstream introduction of twenty-three stormwater inlets. These conditions caused the pond to overflow and erode its banks, causing the banks to collapse, and fill the pond with sediment. The effects of the unmanaged runoff not only caused the pond to fill with sediment to the point where it was only several inches deep, but also caused wildlife as well as resident and migrating birds to abandon the pond as a habitat.

A four phased plan was presented to the NJDEP in an Application for a $100,000 grant to dredge the pond; to manage the stormwater discharge from the upstream detention basin; to control the debris and contamination from entering the stormwater management system at the twenty-three stormwater inlets; and to stabilize the pond embankments. The total project cost was underwritten, in part, from the Department's Grant of $100,000; a contribution of $37,000 from the Linwood Board of Eduction; and "in-kind" services from the City's Department of Public Works to install drain guards at the upstream inlets.

Approximately 800 cubic yards of material was dredged from the pond to bring the pond back to its original condition. The material dredged from the pond was transported to the City's Public Works yard. The cooperation of the City's Public Works Department in this regard, assisted in controlling the cost of dredge removal and transport.

Conversion of the "detention" basin at the nearby Seaview School to a combination "detention/retention" basin was designed to attenuate peak stormwater runoff from the school property in order to reduce the impoundment and "swelling" of stormwater within the pond contributing, in part, to the erosion of the pond banks. The work was successfully accomplished as observed during the course of storm events.

Dredging Operation	Stormwater detention basin under construction
Stormwater detention basin under construction

Stormwater inlet drain guards are part of the City's Plan to comply with the new Stormwater Management Rules pertaining to point discharge contamination as defined in the Low Impact Development (LID) Checklist. This work is undertaken as an "in-kind" contribution to the overall project. Bank stabilization through the planting of vegetative species was completed during the month of October 2006 under favorable weather conditions.

The Department's Grant of $100,000 toward the defined "in-scope" of work served as a catalyst to encourage participation in a number of "out-of-scope" endeavors. For example, the Linwood City Council authorized and paid $10,000 for the Diagnostic Feasibility Study; the Linwood Board of Education contributed $37,000 toward the project costs; the City's Public Works Department facilitated a reduction in the dredging and disposal costs by allowing the use of the city yard for storage of the dredged material; the installation of drain guards at the upstream stormwater inlets as "in-kind" services by the City's personnel will not only benefit the project, but will also comply with the intent of the new Stormwater Management Rules regarding point discharge; and finally, the City approved a change order by which the contractor provided enhanced bank stabilization plantings in compliance with recommendations from the Department's Land Use Regulation Program.

Completed conversion of the School "detention/retention" basin	Completed conversion of the School "detention/retention" basin
Completed pond restoration