Genesis Dream - In the Beginning

 by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

https://medium.com/@AmazonkaIV/the-scientific-proof-that-everything-and-everyone-is-connected-and-infinitive-6f8163423a5b 

Late one night I woke up from a dream, the details of which quickly faded. But the dream left me with an indelible insight I had never considered. It came as an answer to a question I had never asked about a few passages in Genesis. God made all things but didn't name anything. He left that up to Adam and Eve. Why?

The answer is that for God, all creation is one indivisible whole. His sweeping understanding of the universe is more than humans can possibly grasp. We must break everything down into innumerable smaller parts and study each to make sense of our world. The very act of naming a thing artificially separates it from everything else. A thing doesn't appear real to us until it has a name. Once named, we can see it, study it, and maybe even control it. But, in the act of naming things, we move further away from seeing everything holistically. This may be the source of our estrangement with nature. Even when we step back to look at the big picture we can never see the wholeness to which we belong.

This insight is a reminder to me that all our dichotomies are false. There is no mind vs. body, no man vs. nature, and no us vs. them. All distinctions are human constructs, therefore no human value judgments should firmly be attached to them. The act of making and naming things may be essential for our immediate understanding, but it doesn't explain our time or purpose for being here. For that, we must focus on all that connects us to each other and to all things rather than dwelling on the differences. 
This requires faith in all the things we cannot see.

And so it was written, "In the beginning..."

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY - Local Immigrant Origin Story

 by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

Today, October 11th, we celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day! We should take a moment to reflect on the fact that the ground beneath our feet was occupied for many thousands of years by intelligent, caring human beings who loved their families, cared for their children, and sacrificed when necessary for the welfare of their community. They lived in harmony with the natural land we now occupy.

America's indigenous people are a forgotten minority. Many of them live in small, impoverished enclaves that are often far from their ancestral homeland. They still struggle for recognition, fair treatment, and fulfillment of the broken promises we made to them. We should also accept the truth that 95% of us are the children of immigrants on this continent.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/10/08/a-proclamation-indigenous-peoples-day-2021/

Four years ago, in 2018, I wrote a Facebook post about the native New Jersey people at the time of the first European settlers in Morris County, NJ. I am reprinting it here. 

LOCAL ORIGINS

The first Europeans to set foot in this area were Dutch fur traders who arrived sometime around 1629, give or take a few years. It is believed that these trappers and fur traders gradually worked their way up the Raritan River basin from Perth Amboy. The river basin was a rich source of wildlife, such as fish, otters, beavers, deer, and bears. It was also fairly easy terrain to cross. It is relatively unobstructed land, and there were many animal trails and Indian trails to follow.

In the 10,500 years since the last ice age, the Leni Lenape natives of New Jersey probably made countless journeys along these trails on their migrations to the sea. It’s possible they may have wintered along the shore where seafood was plentiful, and temperatures were less severe. The Lenape migrated seasonally to take advantage of different natural resources. It is an underappreciated fact that many of the back roads in New Jersey today follow the game trails and pathways of these natives Americans.

The Leni Lenape was mostly a peaceful, gentile people occupying the territory from southern New York State, all of New Jersey south to Delaware, and from the Atlantic Ocean to eastern Pennsylvania on both sides of the Delaware River. Leni Lenape is the name they called themselves. Their self-identified name translates as Leni, which means "original," "real," or "pure,” and Lenape means “man.” In documented testimony of at least one Lenape tribesman, he clearly stated that his tribe was among the original people of the Earth. The English later referred to them as the Delaware Indians because of their strong connections to that river, which they called “wihittuck”, the river of the Lenape. (see map and pictures)

When English settlers came along, they often referred to Lenape villagers by the native name for the particular lake or river near which they camped. This may be how the Lenape addressed themselves to these foreigners, but it apparently is not how they thought of themselves as a people.

This naming protocol by the settlers would be like space aliens coming down and calling us the Mine Hillian tribe because we say we live here or calling the inhabitants just east of here the Doverite tribe. It was an expedient reference in the early 1700s, but it created the impression that there were many native tribes in the area, tribes with such place names as the Pascack (Passaic), Hopatcong, Succasunnia, Tuckahoe, Pequannock, Minisink, etc. All of these were Leni Lenape villagers from one of several large clans who were also members of the much larger Algonquin nation. For an interesting aside, check out the list of Lenape place names in New Jersey here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/.../List_of_place_names_of...

The Dutch traders got along well with the local natives they encountered along the way and treated them as trading partners. They probably traded metal tools, knives, blankets, hats, and clothing with the Lenape in exchange for the pelts and animal furs they sought.

The first English settlers followed the same route up the Raritan basin arriving in the Succasunna plains some 30 or 40 years after the Dutch fur traders. This corresponds to the period following the English takeover of New Amsterdam (New York City) and most of the other Dutch colonies in New Jersey, New York, and Delaware. According to the historians I’ve read, like the Dutch traders before them, the early English settlers to this area had an amicable relationship with the local natives. The peaceful, productive relationships that the Leni Lenape enjoyed with the Dutch no doubt set the tone for subsequent contacts with other European colonists.

There is more to be said about the Lenape and the early colonists in this area, but first, an homage must be extended to the original Dutch settlers. When the British took over the Dutch colonies, a conscious effort was made to destroy or suppress Dutch history. Dutch records and documents were destroyed by the British. This created a skewed historic view of the early colonies. Yet the character and culture of the Dutch in New York and New Jersey resulted in such successful colonies that the basic culture and structural institutions created in these colonies were left intact. As a result, the subsequent mixing of English and Dutch cultures combined to create a distinctly new "New World" culture that greatly influenced colonial America. To this day that early Dutch culture is best reflected in the culture of the largest Dutch colony, New York City.

For a full and fascinating tour of discovery on the liberal (formal meaning) nature and influence of our early Dutch history, I recommend a book by Russel Shorto titled “The Island at the Center of the World. The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America.”

And for those who didn't click on the Proclamation Link above:

A Proclamation on Indigenous Peoples’ Day, 2021

Since time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures — safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations. On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government’s trust and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations.

Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people — a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to. That is especially true when it comes to upholding the rights and dignity of the Indigenous people who were here long before colonization of the Americas began. For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures. Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples’ resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society. We also recommit to supporting a new, brighter future of promise and equity for Tribal Nations — a future grounded in Tribal sovereignty and respect for the human rights of Indigenous people in the Americas and around the world.

In the first week of my Administration, I issued a memorandum reaffirming our Nation’s solemn trust and treaty obligations to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations and directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to engage in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal officials. It is a priority of my Administration to make respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-governance the cornerstone of Federal Indian policy. History demonstrates that Native American people — and our Nation as a whole — are best served when Tribal governments are empowered to lead their communities and when Federal officials listen to and work together with Tribal leaders when formulating Federal policy that affects Tribal Nations.

The contributions that Indigenous peoples have made throughout history — in public service, entrepreneurship, scholarship, the arts, and countless other fields — are integral to our Nation, our culture, and our society. Indigenous peoples have served, and continue to serve, in the United States Armed Forces with distinction and honor — at one of the highest rates of any group — defending our security every day. And Native Americans have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, working essential jobs and carrying us through our gravest moments. Further, in recognition that the pandemic has harmed Indigenous peoples at an alarming and disproportionate rate, Native communities have led the way in connecting people with vaccination, boasting some of the highest rates of any racial or ethnic group.

The Federal Government has a solemn obligation to lift up and invest in the future of Indigenous people and empower Tribal Nations to govern their own communities and make their own decisions. We must never forget the centuries-long campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country. Today, we acknowledge the significant sacrifices made by Native peoples to this country — and recognize their many ongoing contributions to our Nation.

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor America’s first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today. I encourage everyone to celebrate and recognize the many Indigenous communities and cultures that make up our great country.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2021, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in honor of our diverse history and the Indigenous peoples who contribute to shaping this Nation.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-sixth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

The Streams of Life Around Us

by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

“Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it's gone?” - Joni Mitchell

Lamington Tributary (aka Shawn Brook,) Mine Hill, NJ

More than ever, I see environmental matters from a viewpoint best expressed by Joni Mitchell’s lyrics in this song. Too often, we don’t see the environmental damage we cause until it's too late. Mitchell spotted this truth back in 1970… the same year we first celebrated Earth Day. But it’s the flip side of this lament that motivates me here. Let’s find out what we have before we do more harm than good. Environmental damage is most often the result of ignorance than of malice. Let’s learn what we can about streams and rivers and raise public awareness of the good and beautiful places worth preserving.

A recent article in Scientific American highlights this point. It is a story about the science of trying to bring back long-dead streams in Seattle, Washington. It taught me a great deal, and it has local implications.

For more than a century, people viewed streams as little more than drainage ditches for excess rainwater. Little regard was given to them when rerouting, modifying, dredging, channeling, damming, or even burying streams in concrete pipes whenever it facilitated development. Watershed networks were treated as transit systems for disposing of residential and industrial waste, which is still true in many places. Wetlands were coveted as wasted space suitable for development. The critical importance of these habitat areas was never imagined before we learned what we know today.

Despite what we have learned, the news media calls catastrophic flooding that results from our ignorance of river systems “acts of nature” rather than manmade disasters that they usually are. Climate change exacerbates the problems we created and is itself a manmade disaster. We still engineer solutions to control floods that, in many cases, only make matters worse. At the same time, we are losing an even more important environmental battle that most of us don’t know we are waging against our children’s future.

Here is the point. Natural rivers and streams are just as essential for terrestrial life as the rain itself. They are complex physical and biological systems. What you see standing beside a stream, the vegetation along its banks, its water, rocks, riffles, sediments, aquatic plants, animals, etc., are all important elements. But what lies beneath a stream is just as integral and more extensive than what we see on the surface. While rain fills a stream from above, groundwater also fills it from below. This does more than keep streams flowing during dry spells.

HYPORHEIC ZONES
The subsurface layer where groundwater and surface water meet is called the hyporheic. It is what scientists refer to as an ecotone, a transition zone between two larger ecosystems where species from both zones mingle and where only unique organisms exist. In a big river, the hyporheic can be many miles wider than the river, and it is dozens of feet thick. In a smaller stream, the hyporheic will extend out beyond its banks. It will be thicker and deeper than the sediment layers. The lateral flow of water through the hyporheic layer flows in the same direction as the surface water but at a much slower rate. This serves an important filtration function. The upward flow of groundwater in this zone brings oxygen needed for fish eggs to develop. The upward flow of groundwater is also cooler than the surface water in the summer and warmer in the winter, so it moderates stream temperatures.

The hyporheic layer is full of life in healthy streams. Crustaceans, worms, and aquatic insects move between this zone and the stream bottom. Nematodes, copepods, rotifers, and tardigrades burrow up and down within the zone, creating pathways for groundwater and surface water to mix. Microbial life thrives throughout the hyporheic layer. They metabolize inorganic compounds to create food for other tiny organisms. They transport nutrients between the hyporheic and the stream bed sediments. Their function is like the bacteria in our gut which are essential to probiotic health. The hyporheic and its microbes also filter out and metabolize many of the pollutants introduced by stormwater runoff. 

From a systems perspective, scientists consider the hyporheic layer to be like the liver of streams and rivers because it regulates the physical, chemical, and biological processes. It facilitates aeration, oxygenation, and temperature modulation. It helps clean up pollution and create food for other organisms. It plays an essential role in the nitrogen, phosphorous, and carbon cycles within a stream's ecosystem. But the hyporheic layer is often damaged by many unwise human interventions.

HYPORHEIC THREATS

If you treat a stream or river as a stormwater drainage ditch, that is what it will become.

In the Scientific American article I referenced, manmade channeling and dredging drained the flood plains in the urban Seattle area for development purposes. Stream beds were straightened and narrowed. Riparian vegetation that stabilizes stream banks was removed, and some streams were rerouted through underground conduits and storm drains. The result was flooding, erosion, and the scrubbing away of the stream bottoms. This caused thinning of the hyporheic layers below the sediment until the hyporheic disappeared. The ecosystem collapsed along with the salmon that had sustained the native populations for thousands of years. All recent efforts to revitalize and restore the streams to a life-sustaining habitat failed until those efforts included attempts to restore the hyporheic layer below the streams. Success so far has been modest but encouraging. More research and experience are needed to improve the methodology.

Once we see something, we can’t unsee it. At least, I hope that is true in this case. Seeing our local streams, rivers, and watersheds as complex natural systems essential to sustaining life on land is something I hope everyone can see for our children’s sake.

Sunset Lake – To Be or Not to Be, that is the Question

by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

The County Concrete Corporation in Roxbury has submitted an application to the NJ DEP to create new river bed channels that would reconnect the Black River's upper and lower reaches and the Lamington tributary that flows from the Canfield Avenue spring. These streams would no longer flow directly into Sunset Lake as they have for over half a century. This configuration did exist before sand mining operations in the early 20th Century. Like most water bodies in Roxbury, Sunset Lake is the remnant of an abandoned sand pit. Today, however, it is an ecologically productive and recreationally active lake. The idea of “restoring” the uninterrupted flow of the Black River may sound like a good idea if properly done, but the plans don’t address the environmental impact this would have on Sunset Lake.

To put the proposed Black River Restoration application into perspective, we first need to understand the role Sunset Lake plays in the production of concrete. Making cement and concrete (which is cement mixed with stones) requires a lot of water. Sunset Lake supplies that water to County Concrete. This has been true for decades, and there is plenty of water for this purpose. Some of that water, mixed with the concrete, is carted away to construction sites.

The operations also require water to clean the plant and equipment. Some of this wastewater can be reused, but some must be discarded. This wastewater is full of suspended solids, as you can imagine. It is first discharged into settling ponds where larger suspended particles fall out of solution and settle at the bottom. Not all the suspended solids, mostly comprised of silicates and other native materials, settle out of the water. The smallest particles (or fines) can remain in solution indefinitely. Wastewater from the settling ponds is then discharged back into the lake. County Concrete is licensed to do this by the NJ DEP, which regulates how much effluent or total suspended solids (TSS) can be discharged.

Suspended solids (evident in color differences seen in this satellite image) are present throughout Sunset Lake from County Concrete’s wastewater discharge. This has always been true. Even if the discharge volume, or TSS, is below DEP guidelines, there is always more turbidity than there is in Randolph Pond, which gets its water by infiltration from Sunset Lake. The sandbar between these two waterbodies filters out most of the suspended solids. However, the southern spillway flowing from Sunset Lake to Black River Pond introduces some suspended solids and turbidity into the pond and the Black River beyond.

This is the crux of the problem that County Concrete is trying to solve. I suspect the settlement ponds are less efficient over time while the need for more concrete production grows. There is a build-up of unusable dry material on their property, which must be disposed of, and there are constraints on the production of concrete due to DEP wastewater discharge limitations. Reconnecting the upper and lower reaches of the Black River, and rejoining the Lamington tributary with the Black River, such that neither flows into Sunset Lake, may lift their regulatory burden. 

So, the question is, what is County Concrete’s plan for Sunset Lake? Are they planning, for example, to subdivide the lake to preserve an environmentally healthy open water area for Mine Hill residents suitable for fishing, boating, and swimming? Mine Hill apparently owns part of the land under the lake, so this is a legitimate question.

Concrete is as vital to our modern society as fresh water is vital to our terrestrial environment. It is in everyone’s best interest to find a reasonable balance between the need for concrete and the need for freshwater habitat. As positive as the Black River Restoration project may sound, these plans are incomplete without an environmental impact study of the lake and a discussion on what is fair for the residents of Mine Hill.

County Concrete's Black River Restoration Plan - What isn't Said

by Brian Lynch

I had a chance to review the County Concrete plan to restore the Black River, a noble idea on its face.

The Upper Black River before it flows into Sunset Lake

First, the idea of restoring the Black River to its original condition (with natural vegetation of course) has merit. The concept of reconnecting the upper and lower reaches of the Black River and restoring it to its natural state is a fantastic prospect. The plan as presented in the application appears to be okay and fairly complete as far as the river goes. Some technical discussions and terms are beyond me. An independent scientific review of the plans is needed.

What I didn't see in the application was a comprehensive testing plan of the proposed fill material to be certain it doesn't contain any contaminants. I would like some assurances that the fill material won't be mixed with concrete kiln dust (CKD) or other materials containing constituents that can cause health problems.

Cement manufacturing, in general, is a high pollution industry but also a vital industry. The cement sector is the third largest industrial source of pollution, emitting more than 500,000 tons of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and carbon monoxide per year. The main pollutants from cement production include; cement dust, air pollution, water pollution, solid waste pollution, noise pollution, ground vibration, and resource depletion due to raw material extraction. There are technologies, processes, and regulations to help reduce the negative environmental impacts of cement production while keeping the industry economically viable. We rely on the NJ DEP and the goodwill of County Concrete to strike an equitable balance. 

The next question is, where is all this fill material coming from? It most likely didn't originate from Sunset Lake as the "legacy" fill described in the application. I know of no sand mining operation at Sunset Lake in the 40 years I've lived in town. If the fill material in question is the same material piled above the vegetation line seen from the north shore, it is being brought in from elsewhere.  I've seen that pile rapidly accumulate for several years now. I suspect it comes from their very active quarry on W. Dewey Avenue. There may still be a sand quarry operation at Kenvil Lake to the North, but the material being shipped into the plant is dry, not wet. County Concrete tandem dump trucks ship material into the plant all day long. 

Then there is the bigger question not addressed by the application. What is to become of Sunset Lake? 

Northern end of Sunset Lake from Mine Hill Beach

This former sandpit is today an ecologically productive and recreationally active lake. Recreational activities include fishing, swimming, and boating. To the best of my knowledge, the ecology of Sunset Lake has not been scientifically studied, but it obviously supports a large variety of aquatic plants and animals. 

The lake has three main water sources, the "Lamington" tributary in the Northeast, which originates at the spring along Canfield Avenue; the Black River in the Northwest that originates on the former Hercules Powder property; and the general flow of groundwater through the sand that travels in a North to South direction. The volume of groundwater that flows into the lake is undetermined. Of the two surface water inlets, the Black River supplies perhaps ten times more volume of water. It is likely that some of the surface water in the upper Black River also filters into Chesler Lake, so the exact volume of water it contributes to Sunset Lake is undetermined.

Sunset Lake has three outlets. A spillway at the lake's southern end rejoins the Black River north of Black River Pond. The Black River itself reforms by infiltrating a sandy channel that runs along the southwest shore of Sunset Lake. It is separated from the lake by a narrow, heavily vegetated sandbar. This sandbar is essential to filter out most of the suspended solids introduced into the Lake by the concrete plant operations. On the other hand, the spillway introduces some turbidity into the water entering Black River Pond. This is evident in surface water coloration differences seen in aerial photographs. The third outlet is by general filtration through the sand, including infiltration into Randolph Pond, which has no surface inlets or outlets and little turbidity. 

Sunset Lake supplies County Concrete with the water needed for plant operations.  An unknown amount of water is pumped from Sunset Lake daily, and operational wastewater with a high concentration of suspended solids is discharged back into the lake during plant operations. The County Concrete application states that Sunset Lake's shallowness raises water temperatures in the Black River, reducing oxygen levels. The application does not mention the impact of warm wastewater temperatures and increased turbidity on the lake during plant operations. Wastewater from the plant first passes through three shallow, narrow, and very turbid settling ponds exposed to direct sunlight during the day. This discharge must certainly raise the temperature of the lake. 

The three settling ponds are apparently inadequate in size and volume to meet their purpose of reducing suspended solids. The exceedances of turbid effluent resulted in County Concrete being cited by the DEP several years ago. County Concrete dredged the settling ponds (increase their volume) to lower the concentration of particulates. I see little visual evidence from satellite images that this made a significant difference. In the meantime, the water entering the lake from Mine Hill has a high classification for protection by the DEP. This probably increases the regulatory hurdles County Concrete faces in discharging its wastewater.  

The Black River Restoration plan proposes reconnecting the upper and lower Black River without discharging into Sunset Lake. If I am reading this correctly, the plan also connects the Lamington Tributary with the Black River at the lake's northern end. Creating these new channels would involve filling in a large volume of the lake and reducing the lake's surface area by over eight acres. The plan also appears to eliminate the spillway at the lake's southern end. This would lower the lake's total volume while eliminating all the surface water inlets and outlets. Sunset Lake would become a very large settling pond with exceptionally high levels of suspended solids and even warmer temperatures. Allowing the Lamington Tributary to bypass the lake eliminates some of the regulatory burdens on the company. 

Lamington Tributary 

 I fear that the lake's ecology under this plan would most likely be severely impacted. Very high levels of suspended solids and higher temperatures could result in uninhabitable conditions for aquatic plants and animals.  Swimming and other recreational activity on the lake might cease. 

 Is this an acceptable balance? Are there other possible planning options that might preserve an ecologically viable portion of Sunset Lake? 

 For example, what if the Mine Hill section of the lake were to be isolated from the County Concrete section by a sand bar running along the County Concrete property line and allowing the Lamington tributary to continue flowing into the Mine Hill Lake? The spring feed lake could then reconnect with the Black River at the southern end of the property as it does now, but without the suspended solids it carries. 

Shouldn't an environmental impact study be conducted on the lake to help answer these sorts of questions? Given environmental changes to our weather patterns, conserving as much fresh water as possible is imperative in the months and years ahead. If County Concrete can get by without despoiling the entire lake, that should be everyone's goal. 

Please note: This is all my personal opinion based on my review of the application, my personal observations, and what I have come to learn in my own research. We must wait for expert analysis by actual scientists for a more definitive assessment. 

Raritan Headwaters Association Offers to Help Local Towns Test Private Wells

By Brian T. Lynch, MSW

I read with concern the Roxbury TAP news article about six private wells on Nalron Drive that tested positive for high amounts of PFAS chemicals. The private wells were tested when homeowners were in the process of selling their homes, as the state requires. Such a cluster of wells testing positive for these substances has alarmed residents in that area and raised the fear that the Fenimore Landfill might be the source of contamination. DEP testing and monitoring will be needed to confirm or eliminate that concern. In the meantime, what are homeowners to do? 

I sent a copy of the news article to the Raritan Headwaters Association (RHA). They have a long-established well-testing program and expertise in assessing water quality. Mara Tippett, Associate Director at RHA, and Samantha LaRocca, Well Test Program Manager, both responded. Tippett told me it is important for the affected homeowners to contact the NJ Spill Compensation Fund Claims Program (Spill Fund) before the final sale of their home. If a Spill Fund applicant meets the program's requirements, the fund will reimburse them for the remediation costs to make their well water safe to drink. The applicant must be the current homeowner or the seller if the house is under a contract for sale. The buyer, having received a copy of the well test results during the sale, would be legally ineligible for Spill Fund compensation after purchase.

 

Have the affected residents been advised about this unique New Jersey program? I suspect the Roxbury Health Department already provided affected families with this information.

And what about homeowners with private wells who live near Nalron Drive, those who aren’t selling their homes? They may be wondering whether to test their wells for PFAS chemicals or other more common pollutants. It would be useful for them to know about the NJ Spill Fund should their wells test positive for contaminants.

The Raritan Headwaters Association is a non-profit environmental organization. Among the many things it does, it partners with local municipalities throughout the Raritan River watershed to offer residents an opportunity to test their well water at reasonable rates. RHA also conducts community well-testing events as a part of its community education and outreach services. In addition to the usual well water tests, the RHA can now test for PFAS chemicals.

Given the circumstances in Roxbury, Tippett and LaRocca are offering to schedule a Community Well-testing Event in either Roxbury, Mine Hill, or Randolph if there is an interest. Test kits are available at these events. Individual testing results are always confidential, but because RHA is an environmental organization, it maintains a database of aggregated test results so that communities can be informed about the overall quality of groundwater in their aquifers. This would seem particularly important in this case. Contact your health department or town administrator if you would like your town to schedule a Community Well-testing event. 

Individual homeowners can also contact RHA directly for information about well testing. Call the well testing office at 908-234-1852 ext. 401 to request a well test kit or to get more information.

If you know anyone in Roxbury, Randolph, or Mine Hill with a private well who might benefit from the information posted here, please forward this information to them. Feel free to contact me with questions or comments. 


From the RHA Website:

 

Eighty percent of the households in our region depend upon private wells for drinking water. The US Environmental Protection Agency recommends that household water be tested once a year to ensure the well is free from harmful bacteria and nitrates. Testing can be expensive, but RHA has established a program that provides residents of the Raritan Headwaters region water tests by a state-certified lab at reasonable rates. Information is not shared with any party other than the homeowner and results data can be used to assess groundwater quality in our area. Local Health Departments, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Center for Disease Control all recommend that private well owners test their drinking water annually for bacteria, nitrates, and any other contaminants that are known to be of local concern. “Like annual preventative health screenings, an annual well test for bacteria and nitrates is an important part of maintaining good health.” -Mara Tippett, Associate Director, RHA

The Nightmare Scenario SCOTUS is Plotting For the 2024 Election Takeover

By Thomas Hartmann
(As originally posted on Twitter - formatted and edited for this post. - B. Lynch)


“We damn well better be planning for this [Federal Supreme Court to overthrow our democracy], because it’s likely coming our way in just a bit more than two short years.” – Thomas Hartmann – July 2022

Ultra-Conservative Supreme Court Justices

Six Republicans on the Supreme Court just announced — a story that has largely flown under the nation’s political radar — that they’ll consider pre-rigging the presidential election of 2024.  Here’s how one aspect of it could work out if they go along with the GOP’s arguments that will be before the Court this October:

It’s November 2024, and the presidential race between Biden and DeSantis has been tabulated by the states and called by the networks. Biden won 84,355,740 votes to DeSantis’ 77,366,412, clearly carrying the popular vote. But the popular vote isn’t enough. George W. Bush lost to Al Gore by a half-million votes and Donald Trump lost to Hillary Clinton by 3 million votes, yet both ended up in the White House. What matters is the Electoral College vote, and that looks good for Biden, too.

As CNN is reporting, the outcome is a virtual clone of the 2020 election: Biden carries the same states he did that year and DeSantis gets all the Trump states. It’s 306 to 232 in the Electoral College [count], a 74-vote Electoral College lead for Biden, at least as calculated by CNN and the rest of the media. Biden is heading to the White House for another 4 years… Until the announcement comes out of Georgia.

Although Biden won the popular vote in Georgia, their legislature decided it can overrule the popular vote and just awarded the state’s 16 electoral votes to DeSantis instead of Biden.

An hour later we hear from five other states with Republican-controlled legislatures where Biden won the majority of the vote, just like he had in 2020:

· North Carolina (15 electoral votes),

· Wisconsin (10), Michigan (16),

· Pennsylvania (20),

· and Arizona (11).


Each has followed Georgia’s lead and their legislatures have awarded their Electoral College votes — even though Biden won the popular vote in each state — to DeSantis. Thus, a total of 88 Electoral College votes from those six states move from Biden to DeSantis, who’s declared the winner and will be sworn in on January 20, 2025.

Wolf Blitzer announces that DeSantis has won the election, and millions of people pour into the streets to protest. They’re met with a hail of bullets as Republican-affiliated militias have been rehearsing for this exact moment. [This is what] happened when Pinochet’s militias shot into crowds as he took over Chile, when Mussolini’s volunteer militia the Blackshirts killed civilians as he took over Italy, and Hitler’s Brownshirts did in Germany, their allies among the police and Army refused to intervene.

After a few thousand people lay dead in the streets of two dozen cities, the police begin to round up the surviving “instigators,” who are charged with seditious conspiracy for resisting the Republican legislatures of their states.

After he’s sworn in on January 20th, President DeSantis points to the ongoing demonstrations, declares a permanent state of emergency, and suspends future elections, just as Trump had repeatedly told the world he planned for 2020.

Sounds far-fetched?

Six Republicans on the Supreme Court just announced that one of the first cases they’ll decide next year could include whether that very scenario is constitutional or not. And it almost certainly is.

Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution lays out the process clearly, and it doesn’t even once mention the popular vote or the will of the people:

“Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress…. “

“The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons … which List they shall sign and certify and transmit sealed to the Seat of the Government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes shall then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the President…”

It’s not particularly ambiguous, even as clarified by the 12th Amendment and the Electoral Count Act of 1887. Neither mentions the will of the people, although the Electoral Count Act requires each state’s governor to certify the vote before passing it along to Washington, DC. And half of those states have Democratic governors.

This brings us to the Supreme Court’s probable 2023 decision. As Robert Barnes wrote yesterday for The Washington Post:

“The Supreme Court on Thursday said it will consider what would be a radical change in the way federal elections are conducted, giving state legislatures sole authority to set the rules for contests even if their actions violated state constitutions and resulted in extreme partisan gerrymandering for congressional seats.”

While the main issue being debated in Moore v Harper, scheduled for a hearing this October, is a gerrymander that conflicts with North Carolina’s constitution, the issue at the core of the debate is what’s called the “Independent State Legislature Doctrine.” It literally gives state legislatures the power to pre-rig or simply hand elections to the candidate of their choice. As NPR notes:

"The independent state legislature theory was first invoked by three conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices in the celebrated Bush v. Gore case that handed the 2000 election victory to George W. Bush. In that case, the three cited it to support the selection of a Republican slate of presidential electors.”

Those three [Justices] were Rehnquist, Scalia, and Clarence Thomas, [who is] now the senior-most member of the Court. [The three] wrote in their concurring opinion in Bush v Gore:

“The federal questions that ultimately emerged, in this case, are not substantial."

 Article II provides that: 

“[e]ach State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors... ” 

That doctrine — the basis of John Eastman and Donald Trump’s effort to get states to submit multiple slates of electors — asserts that a plain reading of Article II and the 12th Amendment of the Constitution says that each state’s legislature has the final say in which candidate gets their states’ Electoral College vote, governors and the will of the voters be damned. The Republicans point out that the Constitution says that it’s up to the states — “in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct” — to decide which presidential candidate gets their Electoral College votes.

But the Electoral Count Act requires a governor’s sign-off, and half of those states have Democratic governors. Which has precedence, the Constitution or the Act?

If the Supreme Court says it’s the US Constitution rather than the Electoral Count Act, states’ constitutions, state laws, or the votes of their citizens, the scenario outlined above becomes not just possible but very likely. After all, the Constitution only mentions the states’ legislatures — which are all Republican-controlled — so the unwillingness of the Democratic governors of Michigan, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania to sign off on the Electoral College votes becomes moot.

Under this circumstance, DeSantis becomes president, the third Republican president in the century, and the third Republican President to have lost the popular vote election yet ended up in the White House.

This scenario isn’t just plausible: it’s probable. GOP-controlled states are already changing their state laws to allow for it, and Republican strategists are gaming out which states have Republican legislatures willing to override the votes of their people to win the White House for the Republican candidate. Those state legislators who still embrace Trump and this theory are getting the support of large pools of rightwing billionaires’ dark money.

As the highly respected conservative Judge J. Michael Luttig recently wrote:

“Trump and the Republicans can only be stopped from stealing the 2024 election at this point if the Supreme Court rejects the independent state legislature doctrine and Congress amends the Electoral Count Act to constrain Congress' own power to reject state electoral votes and decide the presidency.”

I take no satisfaction in having accurately predicted — in March of 2020 — how Trump and his buddies would try to steal the election in January of 2021. Or how the Supreme Court would blow up the Environmental Protection Agency. Trump’s January 6th effort failed because every contested state had laws on the books requiring all of their Electoral College votes [must] go to whichever candidate won the popular vote in the state. That will not be the case in 2024. As we are watching, the Supreme Court — in collaboration with state legislatures through activists like Ginny Thomas — is setting that election up right now in front of us in real-time.

We damn well better be planning for this, because it’s likely coming our way in just a bit more than two short years.

  

 Thom Hartmann

_________________________________________

Thom Hartmann

@Thom_Hartmann

A Progressive talk show host; NY Times bestselling author. SiriusXM, Pacifica, Free Speech TV, nationwide radio, podcast. Daily Take: http://hartmannreport.com

End of Roe v. Wade Ends Privacy Right and Liberty in America - A Perspective

Written by Esther Poulsen

Guest Blogger (Published with permission)

For anyone "celebrating" the overturning of Roe v. Wade, just remember it wasn't "abortion" that was overturned, it was the right to privacy.

The spirit of the decision is that the State can strip life, liberty, and property without due process of law. And given the toxicity of politics, the world that Roe v. Wade came into is not the one in which it ended.

First, this decision eviscerates the 1st Amendment's freedom of religion. Religion defines when life begins (or ends), effectively placing all citizens under the rule of the Catholic and Evangelical Christian churches. Remember the panic over Sharia law in Michigan? Well, I guess it's all okay as long as it's one's own faith, right?

Got a news flash for you: There is nothing "scientific" or binary about the current definition of life. It is and likely always will be a question of faith and philosophy within the vast spectrum of scientific observation. Putting that in the hands of the state or majority religion is contrary to the spirit of liberty and has severe implications for freedom in the future.

Second, as some states are considering laws that effectively disallow citizens' ability to seek legal services in other states, it grants license for even further destruction of the fifth and fourteenth amendments. The State now claims corporeal ownership of its residents and may eventually conscript other states to police their own citizens. Fugitive Fertile Female Act of 2030, anyone?

People, this goes beyond abortion. Stem cell therapy, end-of-life care, birth control, fertility clinics, marriage equality, interracial marriage, transgender therapy...cannabis, alcohol, cigarettes, leather, 3d printed guns...BOOKS...

It just takes one government and majority to ban access and ban the ability to seek access elsewhere it is legal.

Histrionic? No more than wailing about "death panels" when the ACA was being considered, though what I just described IS brewing in Mississippi. States ARE mulling how to prevent their citizens from accessing services and information legal elsewhere. And nothing will be safe or sacrosanct.

Except for guns...lots and lots of guns.

So again, just because you've been consuming media telling you it's a great victory today, what has been wrought after the last half-century is the roaring back of statism, curtailing of liberty, and the acquiescence to one sect of one faith. Not exactly Constitutional originalism in our current age.

I don't believe this will result in anything but an expanded American surveillance state that interferes with individual freedom to define their own life, liberty, and use of property. And people -- women and children -- will die from it or feed the industrial/incarceration complex with cheap, disenfranchised bodies. Wins all around for the political donors, who I assure you bless this not for faith, but for fortune.

Given that abortion bans seem to go hand in hand with gleeful stripping of safety nets that would help unwanted babies and their mothers, a bleak new world is precisely what the donor class ordered. That bleakness is planned...distressed and beleaguered citizens can't vote, and citizens eager to impose their morals don't pay attention to the theft of their wealth and economic power by the political elite and their handlers. By the way, this includes the former guy who set all of this in motion. His handlers are also pleased.

So... be glad! Our bodies are blessedly restored to their proper place as property and assets of the state and it's majority, just like in the good old days. Raise a glass (while you can) and cheer our benevolent overlords.

Blessed be the fruit, while the fruit is allowed.

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Esther Poulsen is a New Jersey businesswoman and family acquaintance. Her comments were first published on her Facebook page.

EPA Warns That PFAS “Forever Chemicals” are up to 17,500 Times More Toxic Than Previously Known

by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

(Note: Most of the writing is taken from the sources in the embedded links)

The EPA just warnsed that toxic ‘forever chemicals used to make Teflon and many other consumer products are as much as 17,500 times more toxic than we knew. Lifetime exposure levels for one such chemical, known as PFOA, has been lowered from 70 parts per trillion (a very small amount) to 0.004 parts per trillion. That is a staggering reduction in safe exposure levels for this ubiquitous chemical. The new EPA recommendations calls for a complete rethinking of the use of a whole class of carbon fluoride chemicals, know collectively as PFAS chemicals, used in manufacturing of so many consumer products. 

Background - What Are PFAS?

“PFAS are synthetic chemicals that have been manufactured and used by a broad range of industries since the 1940s. PFAS are used in many applications because of their unique physical properties such as resistance to high and low temperatures, resistance to degradation, and nonstick characteristics. PFAS have been detected worldwide in the air, soil, and water. Due to their widespread use and persistence in the environment, most people in the United States have been exposed to PFAS. There is evidence that exposure above specific levels to certain PFAS may cause adverse health effects.”

PFAS chemicals are chains of carbon atoms coupled with a fluoride atom creating a very strong chemical bond. They are often called “forever chemicals” because they break down extremely slowly, if ever. As a result, they don’t break down in our bodies and build up over time. This is also the case in animals. These “forever chemicals” can persist in the environment for years without breaking down.

Hundreds of everyday products are made with highly toxic fluorinated chemicals called PFAS. They build up in our bodies and never break down in the environment.

The Environmental Protection Agency warned Wednesday that a group of human-made chemicals found in the drinking water, cosmetics, and food packaging used by millions of Americans poses a greater danger to human health than regulators previously thought. Very small doses of PFAS have been linked to cancer, reproductive and immune system harm, and other diseases.

Examples of PFAS uses:

Teflon and other no-stick cookware, Scotch Guard, fire retardants, and water repellent clothing. It is also used in cosmetics and food packaging. Some examples of consumer products with a high concentration of PFAS chemicals include:
 
· Some grease-resistant paper, fast food containers/wrappers, microwave popcorn bags, pizza boxes, and candy wrappers

· Nonstick cookware

· Stain-resistant coatings used on carpets, upholstery, and other fabrics

· Water-resistant clothing

· Cleaning products

· Personal care products (shampoo, dental floss) and cosmetics (nail polish, eye makeup)

· Paints, varnishes, and sealants


Health Studies

EPA evaluated over 400 studies published since 2016 and used new human health risk assessment approaches, tools, and models. Human studies have found associations between PFOA and/or PFOS exposure and effects on the immune system, the cardiovascular system, development (e.g., decreased birth weight), and cancer. The newly published peer-reviewed data and draft EPA analyses (U.S. EPA, 2021a, b) indicate that the levels at which negative health outcomes could occur are much lower than previously understood.

Health Impacts of PFOA and/or PFOS Exposure

· infertility

· thyroid disease

· pancreatic cancer

· non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

· kidney cancer

· prostate cancer

· breast cancer

· liver cancer

· ovarian cancer

· testicular cancer

· decreased birth weights

· compromised immune system

· compromised cardiovascular system

· birth defects

· liver damage

· high cholesterol

· obesity

· hormone suppression

· ulcerative colitis,

· pregnancy-induced hypertension.


EPA Announces New Drinking Water Health Advisories for PFAS Chemicals

WASHINGTON (June 15, 2022) Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released four drinking water health advisories for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the latest action under President Biden’s action plan to deliver clean water and [EPA] Administrator Regan’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap.

Agency officials assessed two of the most common ones, known as PFOA and PFOS, in recent human health studies and announced Wednesday that lifetime exposure at staggeringly low levels of 0.004 and 0.02 parts per trillion, respectively, can compromise the immune and cardiovascular systems and are linked to decreased birth weights.

Those drinking-water concentrations represent “really sharp reductions” from previous health advisories set at 70 parts per trillion in 2016, said Erik Olson, a senior strategic director for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an advocacy group.

Agency officials assessed two of the most common ones, known as PFOA and PFOS, in recent human health studies and announced Wednesday that lifetime exposure at staggeringly low levels of 0.004 and 0.02 parts per trillion, respectively, can compromise the immune and cardiovascular systems and are linked to decreased birth weights… The advisories’ levels are so low that they are difficult to detect with today’s technology.

These PFAS chemicals are now found virtually everywhere and have contaminated every state. An interactive map of the United States plots where the most polluted sites have been identified. Despite all the extreme concerns and stringent new guidance, the EPA has not yet implemented any mandatory standards.


Local Water Standards

Mine Hill and other local municipalities purchases water from the Morris County MUA. Each year a Consumer Confidence Report is published and sent out to the residents. For the first time in 2020, there was unregulated contaminant monitoring for PFOS (Perfluorooctane Sulfonate) and PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic Acid) in our tap water. These are among the most common PFAS chemical compounds in the environment. The results were published in last year’s 2021 report and a screenshot of the results appears below. The results were that none of these chemicals were detected, but the new guidance from the EPA means that a much more sensitive testing methodology will be needed in the future to detect levels in the range of 0.004 and 0.02 parts per trillion.

Because these chemicals build up in our bodies over time, reducing our lifetime exposure is essential. And, because these chemicals don't break down, they are persistent enough to make their way into our underground aquifers and into our well water. Municipalities and private well owners should test for PFAS chemicals periodically and take reasonable precautions if they are detected. This might include a reverse osmosis filtration system for drinking water. Reducing or avoiding consumer products that may contain PFAS chemicals is another good place to reduce our exposure.  

Postscript: Dark Waters is a 2019 American legal thriller film directed by Todd Haynes and written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan. The story dramatizes Robert Bilott's case against the chemical manufacturing corporation DuPont after they contaminated a town with unregulated chemicals. It is a pretty accurate, and dramatic account of the history of PFSA chemical's introduction into the world. It may serve as a primer for further understanding how this chemical crisis came about. 

Floods and Droughts in Our Future – A Local Perspective

by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

There is a front-page article in the Star-Ledger today about how climate changes are creating increased flood risks in New Jersey. In ten of the last twenty-one years, extreme flooding events have occurred, and major flooding is expected to increase two to five times more often in the next 75 years. So, the Governor is issuing emergency rules for new construction to avoid future flood damage. Criteria for flood zones in New Jersey are being raised two feet, for one example. How we deal with stormwater now is already a crisis, not to mention a serious environmental threat to our streams and rivers that must carry extra water out to sea.

The irony is that climate scientists say we can expect longer dry periods between heavier rain events. That may mean we could rapidly cycle between floods and dry conditions. It’s enough to drive you to drink!

And drink we must. Our bodies are 60% water, and our brain contains 75% water. Maybe that’s why our brains are sometimes called wetware. On average, we use 101.5 gallons of water a day per person, which works out to 148,000 gallons of water a year for an average household.

Rain is the source of all the freshwater for life above the sea. We who live around here get plenty. If you’re lucky enough to own a house on a ¼ acre lot in Mine Hill, 9,000 gallons of pure water land on your property for every inch of rain that falls from the sky. We just got 1.2” of rain yesterday.





Mine Hill averages 51.5 “ of rain a year or 1.8 million gallons per acre. That’s three times more than an average household needs. Most of it runs off your property, into the street, down a storm drain, then into a stream or river. The more rain that falls in any given event, the quicker it washes out to sea. That means that the harder it rains, the less water that sticks around for our use and the plants and animals around us. It also means the ecology of our streams and wetlands is under greater stress. Mitigating residential and commercial flooding without addressing the increased volume of water in our river systems could make matters worse for our ecosystems.

Here's the thing we need to keep in mind. All the water we use is either stored in lakes and reservoirs on the surface or in underground aquifers. Once the reservoirs are full, all that extra rainwater from a deluge rushes out to the ocean. It’s lost water.

The aquifers below us are replenished when rainwater seeps deep underground from lakes bottoms, riverbeds, wetlands, and land not covered by buildings, roads, sidewalks, driveways, or other impervious surfaces. It takes a long time for water to reach the aquifers. The more impervious surface area we create, the less water reaches our aquifers. Also, the harder it rains the faster the water spills into storm drains and out to sea.

The keys to refilling our aquifers are to slow down the speed of the water traveling over the land and maximize the amount of open shaded space. I say “shaded” space because evaporation is the biggest source of water loss. Most of the water used to irrigate a farmer's field evaporates before it has a chance to seep underground. The same is true for our unshaded lawns.

So, what might we do on a local level to secure our water sources going forward?

First, we need to preserve as much open space as possible. We should encourage redevelopment over new development. We need to slow down the water as it runs over the land. We can do that by planting more trees and vegetation in places where it has been removed. We can restore vegetation buffer zones along lakes and rivers to slow the inflow of rainwater. We can build better detention and retention basins and upgrade the ones we already have. Modern retention basin designs allow for more water to seep into the ground. They minimize evaporation loss and create more habitat for wildlife.

 

It would also be great if we could increase the capacities of our reservoirs in anticipation of climate changes, but land availability in New Jersey is limited. Better personal water conservation habits and less lawn watering are the alternatives.

We can also advocate for laws and regulations that minimize or reduce impervious cover on new construction or renovations. Porous blacktop can replace conventional blacktop for driveways and parking lots to prevent most runoff. Pavers can replace concrete sidewalks and patios. Rain barrels and landscaping techniques can be used to limit the amount of water that runs off our property and into the street. Nearly half of all the flood water that damages residential and commercial property comes from impervious surface runoff. If everyone limited runoff from their property, it would greatly reduce flooding in flood-prone areas.

The Great Spring - Home to the Earth's Oldest Fish

 

by Brian T. Lynch, MSW

The Great Spring in Kenvil is a relatively small wetlands area where cool spring water rises from an aquifer below to create the Black River in Roxbury Township in New Jersey. The spring is on the southern tip of over 800 acres of industrial land once owned by the Hercules Powder Company. Explosives were manufactured on that land for over 150 years. In all that time, the spring remained undeveloped.

Because it is located on private and restricted property, the existence of the Great Spring is not well known, and the ecology of the spring has never been studied, to my knowledge. This leaves me to wonder: What surprises might be found in a wetlands area that has been nearly undisturbed since the last ice age?

Black River in Kenvil, NJ, approximately 700' from the Great Spring. (Brian Lynch)

I’ve been a volunteer stream monitor for the Raritan Headwaters Association (RHA) since 2017. I thought the Black River began at Black River Pond but later discovered it started as a beautiful, fully formed stream flowing from a spring on the Hercules property. The spring contributes over two-billion gallons of water to the Raritan River each year. The RHA soon established a new stream monitoring sight 700 feet downstream from the spring, and I have been researching its history and geography ever since.

Unidentified fish in the Black River just downstream from the Great Spring (Brian Lynch)

Over the years, I have seen a few fish in this upper reach of the Black River that I can’t identify. I showed photographs to a fish biologist who couldn’t identify them either, perhaps because of the quality of the pictures.

Recently, a family living near the stream noticed some eel-like creatures at the monitoring site. They took pictures and sent them to the RHA and me. What they saw were four adult American Brook Lampreys. These freshwater lampreys are not the despised parasitic lampreys that live in oceans and swim up freshwater streams to attach themselves to game fish. Brook lampreys are smaller and live their entire lives in cool, unpolluted streams with sand or gravel streambeds.

American Brook Lamprey (with family's permission)

Lampreys are the most ancient group of vertebrates alive today. They have existed for over 360 million years, well before the first dinosaurs. Scientists know them as living fossils because they have remained unchanged from their earliest appearance in the fossil records. Lampreys have no jaws. They have seven gill holes behind their eyes instead of the familiar gill slits of modern fish. They are considered an endangered species in some states. In 2016, the New Jersey Endangered and Nongame Advisory Committee recommended a Special Concern status for this species, but no formal rule proposal has been filed to date. I spoke with a representative at DEP who said the Brook Lamprey may be classified as a species of special concern because there may not be enough data about their prevalence to list them as endangered.

Lampreys are increasingly being studied by scientists around the world. There is a growing imperative to study them. I came across a zoological research article in the NIH’s National Library of Medicine that states the potential importance of these ancient fish:

“The rapid development of cell biology and biochemistry technology, especially genomics and proteomics, has pushed lamprey research to new heights. Lampreys have a powerful and unique immune system and many valuable genes. Based on lamprey genome research, important human disease-related genes might be discovered. In addition, the pathogenesis of human diseases can be revealed by establishing lamprey genetic models of human diseases, which could provide the theoretical basis for in-depth study of the pathogenesis and treatment of diseases and development of new drugs. In recent years, lamprey numbers have drastically reduced, so lamprey research is important.”

What else might we discover in this nearly forgotten wetland? The Great Spring has been in private corporate hands for generations. Yet, it is a prolific public water source and an important ecological area. It is time we set this land aside as a protected public resource.

--------------------------------
NOTE: The native Leni Lenape called this spring in Kenvil the “Great Spring.” It contributes over two-billion gallons of water a year to the Raritan River upon which 1.8 million people rely on downstream. The aquifer supplying the spring starts below Picatinny Lake and the Green Pond area of Rockaway Township and stretches all the way down through Chester, Flanders, Long Valley, and into Hunterdon County. Much of the municipal drinking water in this area comes from wells tapped into this aquifer from the Alamatong well field in Randolph and commercial wells in Flanders.

Each year I complete a visual assessment of the stream and its surroundings and then collect samples of the macroinvertebrates that live in the stream bed. Samples are then sent to a laboratory where the types of critters collected are identified and numbered. This information, along with chemical water testing, is vital evidence for judging water quality. The results are posted annually on the RHA website.