New Grants For Restoring Forests In Upper Raritan River Watershed Available

BEDMINSTER, NJ — Raritan Headwaters Association (RHA) is seeking applicants for a new grant program, Raritan Woods & Waterways, focused on restoring forest buffers along the North and South Branches of the Raritan River and their tributaries.

The Raritan Woods & Waterways grants will support work by municipal governments, school districts, local nonprofits, and landowners to plant trees in riparian buffers along the North Branch, South Branch and their tributaries. Grants will cover the cost of purchasing native trees and shrubs, and cages and tubes needed to protect them from deer browse. RHA will provide technical assistance.

"We are excited that our Woods & Waterways grant program will foster partnerships to help restore our forested riparian buffers and protect clean water in the Upper Raritan," said Mara Tippett, RHA’s Executive Director.

Through the Raritan Woods & Waterways grant program, RHA aims to plant 10,000 native trees and shrubs within riparian buffers on publicly-accessible land in the Upper Raritan Watershed over the next few years. The watershed covers 470 square miles in 38 municipalities in Hunterdon, Somerset and Morris counties.

Funding for the new grant program comes from a Natural Resources Damages settlement to compensate for environmental damages at the Cornell-Dubilier Superfund site in South Plainfield. In 2021, RHA was awarded $525,000 to conduct a major riparian buffer restoration effort along the Raritan with a goal of establishing and maintaining 10,000 native trees and shrubs and restoring at least eight miles of stream buffer. Partnerships with municipalities and other public landowners will make this possible.

According to Tippett, planting native trees and shrubs in riparian buffer habitats will help stabilize stream banks, mitigate flooding, lower water temperatures, create habitat for wildlife, reduce pollution from stormwater runoff, and improve water quality.

A regional nonprofit conservation organization, RHA has worked to protect and restore water quality in the Upper Raritan Watershed since 1959.

However, many stream segments in the Upper Raritan are not meeting New Jersey’s Surface Water Quality Standards and are considered impaired. A recent trend analysis of stream monitoring data collected by RHA between 1992 and present indicates the North Branch, South Branch and several of their tributaries have experienced declines in water quality over time - despite state regulations designed to protect these headwater streams.

Dr. Kristi MacDonald, RHA’s science director states, "Preserving and restoring forests, and planting native trees, especially along streams, are the number one actions we can take to ensure clean drinking water, mitigate climate change, and protect plant and animal biodiversity. While the state regulatory requirements for stream buffers in the region range from 150 – 300 feet, RHA’s GIS analysis of buffers indicates many of the waterways have long segments where forested buffers have been removed or are unsustainable due to dead or dying trees, lack of tree regeneration, and a predominance of invasive vines and shrubs."

"We have planted thousands of trees in the watershed so far and could not have accomplished this important work without the support of great municipal and county partners, as well as hundreds of volunteers," says Robert Lucas, RHA’s restoration coordinator.

To learn more about the Raritan Woods & Waterways program, visit raritanheadwaters.org/2024/03/15/woods-waterways-grant-program or contact Robert Lucas at rlucas@raritanheadwaters.org.

The webpage includes the grant application and a video with information about program eligibility, how to apply, and what to expect from the partnership.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.