In an abundance of caution due to the health concerns and the potential spread of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), Clean Water Action is canceling its 34th annual conference scheduled for April 4th. The health of our members, staff, vendors, and the public is of paramount concern. 
But please join us for a virtual conference. Current registrants can contact njcwa@cleanwater.org for a full refund or use their registration as a sponsorship or donation to benefit Clean Water Action programs.

Despite this change of venue, we are bringing the excitement and information directly to your living room! We will be hosting the digital conference panel about creating a healthy democracy at the original time and date. The five climate topics will be covered over a series of weekly web seminars starting Tuesday, March 31st.  We love the communal experience of everyone joining the live video series, if you're unable to join us they will be recorded and available for future viewing.

Save the date for our celebration of World Water Day. Participate in the Water Olympics, become a River-Friendly Resident, explore life in the brook with our microscopes, take the water taste challenge, and much more!

General Audience; no charge for ages 3 and under.

CONTACT E-MAIL

tlove@thewatershed.org

COST

$5.00 per Adult
$5.00 per Child (4 and up)

CANCELLATION POLICY

Cancellations must be received at least 48 hours in advance to be eligible for refund.

We understand that the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus is frustrating. First and foremost, the safety of everyone involved is paramount. Therefore, NJ Conservation Foundation has decided that the prudent thing to do is to cancel this year's Rally. Over the next several weeks, some alternative knowledge sharing methods will be explored, but it is not clear if, or when, such methods may be used.

Questions? Contact Rally@njconservation.org.

The Mercer GreenFest is hosted by the Mercer County Sustainability Coalition (MCSC), and is the area's local green fair featuring sustainable local businesses, community organizations, local farms, cooking demonstrations, hands-on workshops, and informational speaker presentations.  It is organized by the MCSC to educate and inform residents about the best of new energy saving technologies, to promote local businesses and organizations, to further arts and showcase what can be accomplished working collaboratively. This year's theme is reduce, reuse, recycle. This event is free and open to the public.

Join us for the 11th annual 2020 New Jersey Bike & Walk Summit, to be held on Saturday, March 7, 2020. The NJBWC Summit is New Jersey’s statewide meeting of bicycle and pedestrian advocates, elected officials and other township leaders, transportation and urban planners, bike shop owners and managers, cycling, walking, fitness and health enthusiasts and experts, recreation, trails and club leaders and others who are interested in making our state a better place to live.

NJBWC is pleased to offer you the opportunity to learn more about current state and federal legal and policy issues affecting your community, make you aware of various public funding sources, enable you to network, identify and develop mutually beneficial relationships that can help your community become more bike and pedestrian friendly and therefore, more livable.

REGISTER HERE

New Jersey Future’s annual Redevelopment Forum

The health of the Delaware River is a work in progress. The river is a lot cleaner than it was in the mid-20th century when discharges from wastewater treatment plants turned it into an “open sewer,” in the words of the Delaware River Basin Commission. Since then, tougher regulation on discharges has boosted oxygen levels in the river, allowing fish such as shad to return and breed in areas that previously supported little or no aquatic life, while improving water quality for drinking and recreation.

But now the gains are threatened by the Trump administration’s final rollback of the Waters of the U.S. Rule that protects smaller wetlands and seasonal streams from pollution or development. Since those sources feed larger waterways like the Delaware River - whose watershed supplies drinking water to some 13 million people - the measure could set back years of progress, advocates say.

Our panelists will address the progress that has been made in the Delaware River watershed over the last half-century, and examine the factors that could slow or reverse it. Please join us for this NJ Spotlight roundtable event.

Panelists:

Carol R. Collier, Senior Advisor, Watershed Management and Policy, Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

Dr. Alan Hunt, Executive Director, Musconetcong Watershed Association

Doug O'Malley, Director, Environment New Jersey

Additional panelists to be announced.

Moderator:

Jon Hurdle, Environment Reporter, NJ Spotlight

Free parking available on site.

What are some key myths that white people are taught that perpetuate systemic racism? There is a false but popular belief that race, including whiteness, is biological when it’s actually an invention, an idea that was created during colonial America. Exploring the concepts from Karen’s new book Dismantling the Racism Machine: A Manual and Toolbox, participants will look at how the public understands—and doesn’t understand—race and racism.

Karen Gaffney, Ph.D.
Professor of English, Raritan Valley Community College

Kadir van Lohuizen, a photojournalist with NOOR, will present “After Us the Deluge” at at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19, in Corwin Hall, Seminar Room 130. Van Lohuizen will discuss how to convey the message of rising sea levels to a wide audience using photography, video and text. He will explore the most effective platforms to use —print media, television, self-publishing and exhibitions — and how to ensure that research is done thoroughly using different sources.

Van Lohuizen is the first speaker in the Spring 2020 Environmental Humanities and Social Transformation Colloquium sponsored by PEI.

The Musconetcong Watershed Association is 1 of 21 host sites for the New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH) statewide "What is Your Water Story?" initiative.

As part of building a statewide water story archive, the New Jersey Council of Humanities is asking residents to reflect upon and share their perspectives and memories about water. They are hosting these hour-long public discussions in every count of the state to capture stories about the different ways water matters to New Jerseyans. What New Jersey water source or waterway is most meaningful to you? How do you want to preserve such a resource for the future? Why? They want to know!

Each community conversation invites participants to share and/or listen and to meaningful memories and experiences of water in New Jersey. Participants will have the opportunity to contribute their water story to a statewide public archive documenting personal connections to water and waterways in New Jersey.

This event is free to attend. To register and for more information, click here.

Hosted by: the Musconetcong Watershed Association, New Jersey Council for the Humanities, and the Smithsonian Institution Water Ways Exhibit

As we travel through our communities, few of us think about the hidden world of streams and rivers that once flowed across the landscape. In the face of climate change and increased precipitation, real life has shown us that stormwater runoff and flooding have intensified. Centuries of piping, culverting and development have hidden the vast majority of waterways in urban areas. The impact of these factors can be devastating: communities are alienated from their streams and historic ecologies, habitats are degraded, and water quality is compromised. In this PSP session, participants will examine the changes made to our urban streams and hydrology over time. How to read a topographic map, identify watersheds, and #lookfortheriver – to empower community members to explore their own local landscapes – will be included in this program too.

Heather Fenyk, Ph.D.
Founder & President, Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership

Lillian Feickert, president of the NJ Woman Suffrage Association from 1912-1920, was committed to the fight for women’s suffrage. Many do not realize the role that New Jersey played in the suffrage movement. During this PSP session, Feickert explores more about why some NJ women once had the vote and then lost it for over a century. Also, she shares stories about how nationally-known suffrage advocates Lucy Stone and Elizabeth Cady Stanton staged tax and voting protests in the state. Feickert describes how Alice Paul became the dynamo who re-energized the push for a federal amendment and how Dr. Florence Spearing Randolph brought black women into the movement. Participants will learn that women were not “given” the vote, but fought for it for generations.

Sponsored by Rutgers Sustainability Coalition, Students for Environmental Awareness, and Sunrise Movement Rutgers. More information here.  

The goals of this town hall include to have a University-wide update on sustainability. to provide a space for students, faculty, and administration to share knowledge through direct forms of communication; and to identify and address any redundancies and gaps in sustainability efforts on campus.

Clean Water Action’s ReThink Disposable program is partnering with Newark Arts and Newark native, Willie Cole to raise awareness about plastic pollution. This project needs your empty water bottles - 30,000 of them - to create a sculpture for the city on Friday, January 31st at 513 Central Ave, Newark NJ. Join our Facebook page and RSVP to attend here.

Our current initiative combines art expression while promoting environmental sustainability. The giant sculpture that will be produced will become a staple in the Newark community and be placed in a public space for everyone in the community to view. 

• Meet the artist

• Receive a shopping voucher

• Learn from experts on upcycling and reuse

This event is free and open to the public. We encourage residents, community and organizational leaders, scientists, policymakers, business thinkers, educators, and students who are focused on art to address the destruction and conservation of our environment to join us! Join our Facebook page and RSVP to attend here.

In Cumberland County, the Maurice River flows. It flows through farmlands, forests, and suburbs, ultimately emptying into the Delaware Bay. In 1983, a wastewater lagoon at a pesticide plant near the river collaposed, transporting tons of arsenic and killing the vegetation and wildlife in its path. The investigation into this event led to a closer look at the remnant footprints of industry and area development. The re-routing, excavation, dam construction is a compelling story and a starting point for discussion on what can be learned from this type of incident.

Thomas Belton
Research Associate in Science Writing with the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

Municipal leaders and legislators can act now to help protect their communities from the devastating impacts of climate change. Be part of the conversation!

Tuesday, January 28, 2020, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Elizabeth Public Library (main branch)

11 South Broad Street, Elizabeth NJ

There is no cost to attend, but registration is required.

Sign up now to reserve your spot.

Download and share event flyer

Questions? Contact Mo Kinberg

Climate change is here. New Jersey municipalities are already struggling with sea level rise, more intense storms, and extreme heat. As 21 cities plan upgrades worth billions for their outdated combined sewer systems, are they taking these dangers into account?

Learn how municipalities can factor climate change in their combined sewer overflow (CSO) long term control plans at a free event on January 28. Join New Jersey Future, The Sewage-Free Streets and Rivers campaign, and The New Jersey Climate Change Alliance for a conversation with state and local leaders to learn how they’re planning to incorporate climate challenges into sewer system upgrades and explore solutions everyone can work toward.

Speakers (more to be confirmed)

• Christian Bollwage, Mayor of Elizabeth

• Dave Rosenblatt, The State of New Jersey Chief Resilience Officer

• Marjorie Kaplan, Dr.P.H., Associate Director, Rutgers Climate Institute, Rutgers University

• Pete Kasabach, Executive Director, New Jersey Future

• Kim Gaddy, Environmental Justice Organizer for Clean Water Action  

• Andy Kricun, PE, BCEE, Executive Director/Chief Engineer, Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority

• Alan Cohn, Managing Director, Integrated Water Management, New York City Department of Environmental Protection

Designed For:
Waste experts, architects, planners, developers, city planners, haulers, recycling experts, food waste & composting, building managers, waste to energy, investors and other stakeholders.

Zero Waste best practices for developers, tenants, landlords, haulers and building managers in the North East.

• Designing green infrastructure must include the return of water to its original water source.

• New IRS Tax Benefits for 2020 are coming -Reduce overall building project expenses through avoided purchase/disposal costs, and the donation of recovered materials to qualified 501(c)(3) charities, which provides tax benefits.

• From permitting to operational, when is the right time to invest in projects?

• Are capital markets designed to take on investing risks into clean energy?

• There is urgency in finding the means to manage municipal wastes, Waste-to-energy could pose a practical solution if scaled correctly.

• Investors need clear models since traditional capital markets are not designed to take on risk.

• What successful Public-Private Partnerships look like.

RESERVE YOUR SPOT TODAY

Register Now

Each year, the Center for Non-Profits’ conference offers a stimulating day of thought-provoking presentations, hands-on workshops and unique opportunities for insightful networking among leading thinkers and champions of the non-profit community.

Vicki Arroyo, Executive Director, Georgetown Climate Center.

Reception from 5-5:30PM.
Lecture from 5:30-6:30PM.
Q&A from 6:30-7:00PM.

Flyer with more information here.

This program will highlight steps to guide you and your municipality to ensure that new development is in compliance with the New Jersey stormwater management regulations**.

Presentation will include review of the Stormwater eLearning Tool.

PRESENTERS INCLUDE:

• Christopher C. Obropta, Ph.D., P.E., Director of Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program

• Cheryl Reardon, South Jersey Project Director, ANJEC

This interactive training tool is designed for Municipal Board and Governing Body members to provide a general understanding of the post construction section of the permit so that they can “Ask the Right Questions” during their review.

** This Webinar meets standards for educational points for MS4 permits public education and outreach that must be completed by current municipal board and governing bodies

within 6 months of commencing duties.

Certificate of completion will be issued to participants.

PARTICIPANTS WILL ALSO RECEIVE:

NJ Forest Service, Urban & Community Forestry Program (NJUCF) CEUs

REGISTRATION DETAILS:

ANJEC Members: No charge to participate

Non-members: $10

TO REGISTER:

Email ANJEC (info@anjec.org) with name and affiliation,  or call 973-539-7547

Register here for the Camden Environmental Summit, sponsored by the Camden Collaborative Initiative.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER:
CAROLYN FINNEY, PH.D., AUTHOR OF BLACK FACES, WHITE SPACES: REIMAGINING THE RELATIONSHIP OF AFRICAN AMERICANS TO THE GREAT OUTDOORS 

Fostering collaboration among natural and social science researchers and students interested in climate change from institutions in the NJ, NY and Philadelphia region. Submit poster abstracts by November 10, 2019. Register by November 14, 2019 Posters can be on any scholarly climate change research; not restricted to the theme Free for students, faculty, and staff of academic and research institutions

More info here

Please join watershed advocates at this research conference offered by Drexel University!

The Delaware Watershed Research Conference is a component of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University's initiative to encourage novel research throughout the Delaware River Watershed and to foster collaboration among the growing research community.

This gathering will serve as a platform for experts in their respective disciplines to discuss the state of watershed research, particularly within the Delaware River Watershed, toward answering management and conservation questions.

Topics will range from environmental monitoring, novel research, and ecological modeling, to economic, social, and political effects and implications.

Registration is now open! Click here to register.

Please email Allison Stoklosa at ams844@drexel.edu for questions.

WHAT GOES INTO THE GROUND…COMES OUT OF THE FAUCET

Learn how you can make a difference in protecting clean water right in your own backyard! Many communities in New Jersey rely on septic systems for treating wastewater. Good maintenance of septic systems is essential to protecting water and prevents costly problems and repairs.

English Sewage Disposal will present Septic 101, discussing the why, what, & when of septic maintenance, including how to identify and avoid septic problems. Each workshop attendee will receive a discount coupon from English Sewage.

Rain gardens are another way to be part of clean water solutions. Rain gardens use natural filtering to remove toxins from stormwater runoff before seeping into the groundwater. In addition to protecting your drinking water, rain gardens help prevent flooding during storm events. Also, native plants provide habitat for birds and pollinators and add visual appeal.

This workshop is recommended for Environmental Commission members, residents, business owners, township officials, planners, green team and open space committee members.

Registration:
ANJEC members: No charge to attend
Non-members: $15
To register, email ANJEC info@anjec.org, or call 973-539-7547.

Funding for this program and the Rain Garden Rebate Program provided by:
The William Penn Foundation and the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation

ROUNDTABLE & NETWORKING INFORMATION SESSION

Please join us for a regional plastics forum aimed to inspire local action through policy and stewardship to reduce single-use plastic consumption and pollution.

Come learn and share best practices on education, ordinances and implementation.

Invited guest Senator Greenstein will provide update on State legislation.

RSVP

No cost for ANJEC members, $10 non-members;

To register, email info@anjec.org or call 973-539-7547.

Light supper will be served.

The Delaware River Basin Commission will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 that is open to the public.

Hearing items include draft dockets for withdrawals, discharges, and other projects that could have a substantial effect on the basin’s water resources.  Click here for full details, including location information, the draft docket applications, and instructions on how to comment.