The Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission (PVSC) conducts a clean-up on top of the Great Falls in Paterson at least twice a year. This requires diverting the flow of the Passaic River through an adjacent hydroelectric plant owned by Paterson and operated by Eagle Creek Renewable Energy.  PVSC River Restoration Program team members then remove fallen trees, litter and other debris that accumulated along the shores and in the rocks above the falls.

The Great Falls, which plunges 77 feet over a shelf of basalt, are the second largest falls in the northeast after Niagara Falls. For more than 200 years, the Great Falls have powered manufacturing plants in Paterson and played a major role in the industrial development of New Jersey. They were designated a National Historical Landmark in 1976 and were added to the National Historical Park System in 2009.