Restoration Projects
Map of restoration projects by type in the Raritan Basin
The compilation of restoration projects summarized in this section came out of a partnership with the NJDEP’s Bureau of Environmental Analysis, Restoration and Standards (NJDEP-BEARS) to assist them in conducting stakeholder engagement for their 2016 Integrated Water Quality Assessment Report that has a focus on the Raritan River watershed. While the NJDEP had captured information about restoration projects they had funded (e.g., through the 319(h) grant program to address nonpoint source pollution), they were lacking information about restoration projects done through other partner programs (i.e., USDA) or that were conducted/funded by municipalities or non-profit stakeholders. The SRRI solicited restoration information from these other stakeholders, combined it with data prepared by the NJDEP-BEARS for the Integrated Assessment and summarized it by HUC-14 and by type of restoration.
Over 43% of the HUC-14s in the Raritan have at least one restoration project implemented. A myriad of organizations are involved in restoration work with no basin-wide prioritization of need or coordinated restoration.