Current Projects

The Bureau of Environmental Analysis, Restoration and Standards is responsible for conducting and coordinating environmental stewardship, water quality analysis and restoration, water quality standards development, water quality management planning and other activities designed to protect, maintain and enhance water quality for all waters of the State in accordance with the federal Clean Water Act, New Jersey Water Pollution Control Act, and New Jersey Water Quality Management Planning Act.

BEARS provides the scientific foundation for restoration and protection of New Jersey’s water resources so that all of the state’s rivers, lakes and coastal waters are fishable, swimmable and support healthy ecosystems and so all of the freshwater resources are clean sources of drinking water.

Watershed Restoration and Protection Plans for Miry Run Watershed and Doctors Creek Watersheds

Grantee: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Funding amount: $170,000

The Miry Run and Doctors Creek watersheds are located in the Upper Delaware water region, spanning portions of six municipalities in Mercer and Monmouth Counties. These watersheds are both dominated by agricultural and urban land uses, and both possess a total phosphorous TMDL. While the TMDL documents do not identify specific phosphorous sources, nonpoint sources are the likely primary contributors to phosphorous impairments in the three HUC14s comprising these watersheds.

The purpose of this project is to develop Watershed Restoration and Protection Plans for the Miry Run and Doctors Creek watersheds, which will facilitate attainment of the required reductions in total phosphorus loading. One of the main goals of these plans will be to identify specific pollutant sources and recommend stormwater management practices to reduce pollutant loading.

Both Watershed Restoration and Protection Plans will satisfy the nine minimum elements required by EPA’s watershed planning process. The plans will address nonpoint source pollution throughout the entire watersheds, with special attention towards leveraging an existing partnership between the Rutgers Cooperative Extension’s Water Resources Program and Hamilton Township in Mercer County, which has already produced a floodplain management plan, a municipal stormwater management plan, a database of stormwater infrastructure, and an impervious cover assessment.