Raritan River Documentary Kicks off Environmental Film Series in Long Valley

On Wednesday, April 5th at 6:30 PM, Washington Township Public Library will be screening Rescuing the River: The Raritan, the first film in a new monthly environmental film series. This 2012 documentary tells the story of New Jersey’s Raritan River, a water source profoundly contaminated for over 200 years, and the extraordinary efforts to clean it up. The film will be followed with a Q&A with Bill Kibler, Director of Policy at the Raritan Headwaters Association.

On Wednesday, May 3rd at 6:30 PM, the library will screen DamNation (2014), a documentary that charts the sea change in our national attitude from pride in big dams as engineering wonders to the growing awareness that our own future is bound to the life and health of our rivers. The Q&A will be led by Beth Styler-Barry, Executive Director of the Musconetcong Watershed Association.

On Wednesday, June 7th at 6:30 PM, the library will screen Sourlands. The largest city in the United States is, by far, New York. Philadelphia is the fifth largest. Separating them is New Jersey, the most densely populated state. Directly between New York and Philly — and all those people — there is a forest that has survived the bulldozers of development. The locals call this place the Sourland Mountain, or sometimes simply “the Sourlands.” Sourlands tells the story of this green oasis from the perspective of its remarkable citizens. The film will be followed by a Q&A with Caroline Katmann, Executive Director of the Sourland Conservancy.

The films in the series are free and open to the public, but registration is requested. Sign up online or call the library at 908-876-3596. Washington Township Public Library is located at 37 East Springtown Road, Long Valley, NJ 07853.