{"id":897,"date":"2023-04-24T14:49:33","date_gmt":"2023-04-24T18:49:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/?page_id=897"},"modified":"2024-10-18T16:08:23","modified_gmt":"2024-10-18T20:08:23","slug":"woodbridge-river-restoration","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/restoration\/completed-restoration-projects\/woodbridge-river-restoration\/","title":{"rendered":"Woodbridge River Restoration"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=””]LOCATION:<\/strong>\u00a0adjacent to the Woodbridge River on Woodbridge Township property, Middlesex County<\/p>\n

PURPOSE:<\/strong>\u00a0To restore and enhance approximately 17 acres of degraded marsh by regrading and lowering the site elevation.\u00a0 Approximately 2 acres of marsh were restored by removing existing berms and fill.\u00a0 The restoration project has reestablished daily tidal flow to areas formerly precluded from regular tidal influence to the Woodbridge River Marsh system.<\/p>\n

This project has effectively improved the Arthur Kill\/Woodbridge River estuary, facilitated carbon transport, and increased nursery and forage habitat for fish and wildlife resources that were injured by the Exxon Bayway oil spill.<\/p>\n

FUNDING:<\/strong>\u00a0With the NJDEP as the lead, this project was one of the efforts taken by the New York\/New Jersey Harbor Spill Restoration Committee (HSRC) which was established to restore injured natural resources resulting from uncontrolled releases of oil and hazardous substances into the New York\/New Jersey Harbor estuary.\u00a0 The HSRC was established by court order to manage and allocate funds collected pursuant to legal settlements reached under the Clean Water Act, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (Superfund) for restoration of injured natural resources.\u00a0 Funding for the Woodbridge River restoration project came from the 1991 natural resource damages settlement with Exxon Corporation for their 1990 Bayway refinery oil spill into the Arthur Kill and its tributaries.<\/p>\n

BACKGROUND:<\/strong>The 32 – acre project site contained a degraded tidal marsh that was previously diked and filled and had become colonized by the invasive common reed,\u00a0Phragmites australis<\/em>. \u00a0The project area is located in a heavily developed urban area and was already used by the community for open space and environmental education. To evaluate progress of the restoration project, the HSRC retained a contractor to monitor the 17.15 acre restoration area.\u00a0 The monitoring program will examine the restored site and a local reference site downstream for two periods; September \u2013 October 2011 (Year three post restoration) and September \u2013 October 2013 (Year Five).<\/p>\n

PROJECT SUMMARY:\u00a0<\/strong>The Woodbridge River had previously undergone channelization, presumably in an effort to alleviate flooding in the area.\u00a0 Unfortunately the excavated sediment was placed adjacent to the river creating a berm at the water\u2019s edge which was the perfect environment for\u00a0Phragmites australis<\/em>.\u00a0 Once the river edge became colonized by this invasive plant, the plant quickly started to overtake the tidal marsh and elevated the level of the marsh plain with its dense rhizome root mat.\u00a0 The construction at the project site involved removing the berm adjacent to the river and lowering the elevation of the marsh so that it could be flowed by the tide twice per day.\u00a0 Once the site was at the correct elevation and tidal creeks were recreated, the site was planted with smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora<\/em>) and saltmeadow cordgrass (Spartina patens<\/em>) as well as other herbaceous and wetland scrub shrub species.\u00a0 Temporary herbivory fencing was installed to reduce predation of newly installed plants by Canada geese.\u00a0 This site is currently thriving in a form similar to its original state and no longer overrun with\u00a0Phragmites australis<\/em>.<\/p>\n

BENEFITS:<\/strong> This restoration project has greatly enhanced the local ecology, and in turn, the public’s use and enjoyment of the site. Due to the increase in juvenile fish habitat created by the project and the reduction in standing water, the project has also reduced nuisance mosquito populations affecting residents of the Town and County.<\/p>\n

PARTNERS:<\/strong>\u00a0NJDEP, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), Woodbridge Township, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Baykeeper, and local community groups such as the Woodbridge River Watch<\/p>\n

AWARDS:<\/strong>\u00a0 The project received the 2007 Coastal America Spirit Award[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]\"map<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\"image<\/a>
(L to R) Tim Keeney, NOAA Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere – retired; Carl Alderson, NOAA, David Bean, NJDEP and Rena Weichenberg, USACE – NY District with the Coastal America Spirit Award<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\"image<\/a>
Before restoration starts<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\"Grubbing<\/a>
Grubbing of the site<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\"Construction<\/a>
Construction in progress<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\"After<\/a>
After completion<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=””]LOCATION:\u00a0adjacent to the Woodbridge River on Woodbridge Township property, Middlesex County PURPOSE:\u00a0To restore and enhance approximately 17 acres of degraded marsh by regrading and lowering the site elevation.\u00a0 Approximately 2 acres of marsh were restored by removing existing berms and fill.\u00a0 The restoration project has reestablished daily tidal flow to areas formerly precluded […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":0,"parent":146,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"fullwidth-title.php","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-897","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nNJDEP| Office of Natural Resources Restoration | Woodbridge River Restoration<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"NJDEP| Office of Natural Resources Restoration | Woodbridge River Restoration | Page 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