Oakland Mayor and Council Look to Improve Health of Ramapo River

The Oakland Mayor and Council are looking for ways to help generate funds so they can employ Trout Unlimited to deal with current state of the Ramapo River.

According to Borough Administrator Richard Kunze, the Trout Unlimited project would cost between $250,000 and $400,000.

“We would love to go forward with this project,” said Mayor Linda Schwager. “If we had the money right now we would not hesitate. We are pursuing some grant money and funding.” 

The river’s overall health has been deteriorating due to increased natural debris, such as downed trees, and runoff from Interstate 287 was also mentioned as a reason.

Trout Unlimited is a national organization of about 400 chapters and 140,000 volunteers that is dedicated to the conservation of North America’s cold-water fisheries.

A presentation given by Brian Cowden of Trout Unlimited on April 24 displayed their methods of reviving rivers to a healthy state. The presentation highlighted work done on the Musconetcong River in Washington Township.

The procedure would require the work of heavy machinery in the river itself.

According to Cowden, the process of “bed manipulation” will be employed to accomplish the following:

• Narrowing the channel by restoring point bars and creating riffles (upstream facing weirs made from large boulders).
• Deepening and stabilizing pools to provide cover and thermal relief.
• Deepening the thalweg as needed to provide better channel low-flow capacity. 

“The only thing is, it’s not going to cure the flooding,” said Councilwoman Elizabeth Stagg. “People are going to think it will cure the flooding and they are going to be upset when it doesn’t.”

Property lines and the health of marine life are also at stake. As an orginazation who preaches conservation, Trout Unlimited's methods will not negativley effect marine life despite the use of heavy machinery. Cowden explained that the water quailty will be more condusive to marine life after the process has been completed. 

“The water is moving in the wrong direction and it is sheering away people's property. This will help with erosion and the health of the river.” explained Council President Chris Visconti.