Anatomy of America’s Worst Superfund Site · mond Alkali Superfund site on ... NJ. EPA has...

By Christopher Len On Friday, April 11, 2014 the

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 2 announced a proposed remedy for the Dia-mond Alkali Superfund site on the Passaic River in Newark. The Diamond Alkali site now stretches seventeen miles from Newark Bay to the Dundee Dam near Garfield,

NJ. EPA has proposed bank-to-bank dredging of the lower 8 miles of the river to remove a variety of hazardous substances, including PCBs, mercury, DDT and other pesticides and heavy metals.

The most pervasive and dangerous contaminant, however is dioxin, which was a byproduct and contaminant of Agent Or-

ange produced by the Diamond Shamrock Chemicals Company on Lister Avenue in Newark. The Agent Orange manufacturing pro-cess produced dioxin as a byprod-uct that polluted the Passaic River and much of the Ironbound section of Newark, and as a contaminant contributed to countless cancers in American servicemembers and

Summer 2014, Volume XVII, Issue 2

HackensackRIVERKEEPER®is the independent, non-governmental advocate for the Hackensack River.

Anatomy of America’s Worst Superfund SiteDiamond Shamrock’s self-serving decisions led to a legacy of death and destruction.

continued on page 3

By Hugh M. CarolaIn the late 1990s during Gov-

ernor Whitman’s administration, the NJ Department of Environ-mental Protection (DEP) released the results of a multi-year study of Blue Crabs found in the New-ark Bay Complex (lower Hack-ensack and Passaic Rivers, New Jersey segments of the Kill Van Kull and Arthur Kill, and the bay itself). The results showed such elevated levels of dioxin, hexava-lent chromium and mercury that the state banned crabbing in all of the affected waterways. Then, as now, crabbing there is illegal and

subject to a fine of up to $3,000.By 1999 “Do Not Catch – Do

Not Eat” signs in English, Spanish & Portuguese began showing up along those waterways. Our orga-nization secured a grant to work with community groups in Bay-onne, Elizabeth, Jersey City, New-ark and Passaic to inform residents of the dangers of consuming crabs (and finfish as well) from local waters. For the three years of the grant’s timeline we did our part – not just in those communities, but whenever and wherever we

spoke to the public. We still do.

But once the initial fanfare was over, the attention of the DEP and NJ Department of Health & Senior Services moved on to other con-cerns in other parts of the state. And what of the people whose

continued on page 7

Regional Blue Crab Advisory Goes MultilingualA good move but enforcement remains virtually nonexistent.

InsideAt the Helm 2Real Science 4Eco-Cruise on the Passaic River 8 Reservoir Paddle Series 9Reservoir Challenge Wrapup 10 EarthFest 12

Summer SPLASH 13World Series of Birding 14Watershed Field Notes 16 American Redstart 18Vellencamp Scholarship 19Volunteer Corner 20Ambassador’s Update 22

Hackensack Tidelines-Summer 2014

Our Advocacy Watch Never Sleeps

At the Helm

A word from Captain Bill

231 Main StreetHackensack, NJ 07601-7304

Phone: (201) 968-0808 Fax: (201) 968-0336 Hotline: 1-877-CPT-BILL

[email protected]

Board of TrusteesIvan Kossak, CPA, President

Robert Ceberio, Vice PresidentRob Gillies, Secretary

Dr. Beth Ravit, TreasurerSusan Gordon

Virginia Korteweg Frank MassaroKelly G. Palazzi

Ellie SprayMargaret Utzinger

Nancy Wysocki

Honorary TrusteesRobert F. Kennedy, Jr.William “Pat” Schuber

Executive DirectorCaptain Bill Sheehan,

Hackensack Riverkeeper

HRI StaffHugh Carola, Program Director Jodi Jamieson, Project Manager

Chris Len, Staff AttorneyMary Knight, Operations Director

Joanna Marino, Outreach Coordinator

Chris Marinello, Watershed Ambassador

Jodi Jamieson, Managing Editor Hugh Carola, Copy Editor

We gladly accept submissions of articles, photography and advertisements from the community; however, we retain edito-rial discretion. We do not necessarily en-dorse any individual or company whose advertisements are found in these pages.

Hackensack Tidelines is published quarterly

on recycled paper.Riverkeeper is a registered trademark and service mark of Riverkeeper, Inc. and is licensed for use herein.

Waterkeeper is a registered trademark and service mark of Waterkeeper Alliance, Inc.and is licensed for use herein.

continued on page 23

Greetings from the helm! You have no idea how happy we are to be on the water after such a long winter/spring. Let me begin with a quick recap: Over the weekend of April 26-27 we kicked off our 2014 outdoor season with our first-ever EarthFest Overpeck (see page 12). Over 2,500 people, fifty exhibitors and four bands joined us at that official Bergen County Earth Day celebration. The weekend also marked the opening of our Overpeck Kayak Center and the Fifteenth Anniversary of our Paddling Center at Laurel Hill County Park in Secaucus.

In June we completed two other special outdoor events: our sixth annual Reservoir Challenge in Haworth and our fourth annual SPLASH event; the latter featur-ing a major canoe-borne River Cleanup in Secaucus and Lynd-hurst. And that’s not the half of it.

In our efforts to return public access to the river, we’re adding four new stops on the Hackensack River Paddle Trail this year: Mill

Creek Point Park in Secaucus; and 16th Street, Rutkowski, and Ahern Parks in Bayonne. In addition to canoe & kayak put-ins, each stop will include wayfinding and infor-mational signage. When complete, the trail will provide seventeen access points along nearly twenty-three miles of the lower Hacken-sack River and Newark Bay from Bayonne north to Oradell.

Speaking of access, construc-tion will soon begin at Laurel Hill on the long-planned Riverfront Promenade. The 900-foot board-walk will include fishing access throughout its length and be ADA-accessible. Funding for the project came as a direct result of Hackensack Riverkeeper’s suc-cessful litigation against Honey-well International. The corporation is currently engaged in the final phase of its cleanup of chromium pollution in Jersey City – a project expected to cost them upwards of $2 billion – and has contributed $2.5 million to Hudson County for


Vietnamese citizens exposed to the herbicide.

On June 18, 2014 the Wall Street Journal published a story stating that the Occidental Chemical Corporation, the corporate successor to Diamond Shamrock, has pro-posed using bacteria to remove con-tamination from the river sediment. The experimental bioremediation would be far more uncertain – and far less costly for the company.

It is important to remember, then, just how the river became polluted. This was not a mistake or an accident; nor was the contami-nation of the Agent Orange with dioxin an unavoidable outcome of its manufacture. Rather, Diamond Shamrock systematically – some would say criminally – made decisions that maximized profits but also maximized the threat to human and environmental health.

In June of 1992, the New Jer-sey Appellate Division decided a dispute between Diamond Sham-rock and its insurers. The quotes below are taken verbatim from the court decision, explaining what Diamond Shamrock did and did not do that lead to so much harm. Where the court refers to TCP, it is talking about 2,4,5-Trichlorophen-oxyacetic acid, the primary active ingredient in Agent Orange.• Diamond knowingly and routine-

ly discharged contaminants over a period of 18 years. The judge determined that Diamond knew “the nature of the chemicals it was handling,” knew that “they were being continuously dis-charged into the environment,” and knew that “they were doing at least some harm.”

Diamond Shamrock Chemicals Co. v. Aetna Cas. & Sur. Co., 258 N.J. Super. 167, 211, 609 A.2d 440, 461 (App. Div. 1992)

• We recognize that we should not judge Diamond’s conduct from the vantage point of twenty-twenty hindsight. The critical fact remains, however, that Diamond knew it was dealing with a toxic substance. Perhaps it was not aware of the exact extent of the dangerous consequences ema-nating from its polluting activ-ity. However, we cannot ignore reality by accepting the blithe assurance of Diamond that it did not intend to injure others. The evidence abounds the other way.

Id. at 215

• In the Autumn of 1959, Dia-mond’s representative, Thorton Holder, offered a two-step pro-cess by which dioxins could be eliminated, or at least reduced, in the manufacturing process. Despite specific preventive rec-ommendations, Diamond made a conscious decision to run the autoclave, in which chemicals were processed into TCP, at a higher temperature than sug-gested by Holder. The reason for its decision is obvious. When the temperature in the autoclave was reduced, the reaction time was prolonged, resulting in a de-crease in the volume of produc-tion. The general rule was that a reduction in temperature of ten degrees reduced the reaction time by 50%. The only conclu-

sion to be drawn is that Dia-mond’s management was wholly indifferent to the consequences flowing from its decision. Profits came first. Id. at 212-13

• Almost from the day produc-tion of the phenoxy herbicides commenced, Diamond’s workers experienced a skin disease called chloracne. Chloracne was char-acterized by Diamond’s corpo-rate medical official, Dr. William York, as a “serious ... very dis-figuring social disability.” It was clear that by June 1955, Dia-mond, though not certain of the specific cause of the chloracne, was aware that something in its chemical processing to which its workers were exposed resulted in this inflammation. Id. at 182

• Diamond was advised to reduce air contamination, and to insist on both personal and plant cleanliness. Specific recommen-dations for reducing the level of worker exposure to the toxic substance included the cover-ing of conveyor belts, installing spouts through which liquid or powder went into cans or bags with suction around them to prevent spillage, channeling the chemical liquid overflow to pipes, not open gutters, and using the least toxic solvents for cleaning. As testimony from plant employees at trial graphi-cally demonstrated, however, these suggestions were either ignored or poorly implemented.

Id. at 182• Contaminants, including dioxin

from the TCP process, were regularly vented directly into the atmosphere from the autoclave and another piece of equip-ment, the anisole drop tank. In a deposition, James Worthington, Diamond’s manager of scientific

Worst Superfund Sitecontinued from page 1

continued on page 4

T hey caused uncounted victims

years of health problems, they

robbed the Passaic River from New-

ark, they caused billions of dollars

of environmental harm so they could

make more money and for no other

reason. Shed no tears for them.


Worst Superfund Site continued from page 3

services, acknowledged that dioxin indeed entered the environ-ment through some of the plant’s air vents. A former Diamond em-ployee, Nicholas Centanni, testi-fied that a grayish cloud of smoke would come out of the scrubber, which was attached to the TCP process building. The cloud of smoke would flow into the atmo-sphere but residue from the smoke would settle on employee cars in the parking lot causing the paint “to pit”-to look as if acid had been thrown on the cars. Id. at 214

• In 1960, a reaction in a TCP autoclave whose temperature was “out of control” caused an explosion which destroyed

the larger of the two process buildings on Diamond’s New-ark property. The building was reconstructed in 1961 but thereafter production was lim-ited to phenoxy herbicides. The old but undamaged chemical manufacturing building was the site of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T pro-duction along with their esters and amines. Former Diamond employees provided graphic descriptions of the company’s heedless indifference to the environmental damage which resulted from its manufacturing operations. Id. at 184

• The Agent Orange was always on the floor; it solidified into a slippery oil film that made normal walking impossible. To

move one had to “sort of slide along” instead of taking steps. The floor was not cleaned daily. Rather, every other week or so it was washed down with sulfuric acid. As we mentioned previ-ously, the sulfuric acid wash damaged the concrete floor, turn-ing it to dust. Therefore, every few years the company installed a new concrete floor. The floor was then hosed down and the water directed into trenches which ran directly into the river or into an industrial sewer. How-ever, many times the trenches would block up, sometimes by trash, but generally by the chemical material which would solidify. The liquid would back up onto the building floor or

Real Science for Real People

Passaic River Superfund CleanupBy Dr. Beth Ravit

Last month I had the opportunity to listen to the EPA presentations (Newark and Kearny) discussing the proposed cleanup of the Passaic River, home to the largest designated Superfund site in the country. The Passaic sediments contain dioxins, PCBs, PAHs, mercury, copper, and pesticides (DDT, Dieldrin) in the lower eight miles of the River, where sediments from bank to bank are contaminated up to a depth of fifteen feet.

Because the Passaic is the largest Superfund site, the cleanup will also be the largest Superfund remediation attempted – more complex than the Hudson River PCB cleanup now under way. There are serious questions about how long the Passaic cleanup activities will take, what the disruption to local communities and the environment will be, and where and how the contaminated sediments will be disposed.

There are three remediation options being con-sidered1 for the lower eight river miles:

1. Remove all sediment contamination 2. Remove some contamination and cap with

sand/rock bank to bank

3. Remove contamination ‘hot spots’ and cap with sand/rock 220 of 650 acres

There are also three options for disposing of the contaminated sediments:

1. Bury in Newark Bay and cap with sand/rock2. Dewater and bury off site3. Recover usable components and dispose of

contamination offsiteThe costs associated with the three choices range

from $370 million (Option 3) to over $3 Billion (Option 1). EPA is recommending Option 2, esti-mated to cost $1.73 Billion. The Responsible Parties (a group of 73 companies that were or are engaged in industrial activities along the Passiac) are arguing for remediation Option 3. I believe Option 1 should be selected because the idea of leaving this danger-ous contamination in place and capping it to be problematic for the following reasons:

• Capping (proposed in Options 2 and 3): Although the name implies a heavily engineered structure, a ‘Cap’ is actually composed of a layer of rock covered with sand (total cap depth of 24 inches) that is placed on top of the contamination and re-


spill out of the trenches and onto the surrounding ground.

Id. at 214-215 • Pipes with caustic material also

ran between the two buildings. Often the material would freeze. In order to free the substances, employees would break and then steam clean the pipes. The material steamed from the pipes would either be released onto the ground or discharged into the river. Pipelines along the 2,4,5-T unit constantly became clogged with phenol which would seep into the ground because the trenches designed to carry the substance away from the build-ing had been destroyed by acid. Id. at 185

• Aldo Andreini, employed by Di-

amond between 1959 and 1969, explained that he was a formula-tor who was required to clean the 10,000 gallon storage tanks located on the plant site. The storage tanks contained amine, butyl-T 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D. The witness recounted that he would clean the tanks by shoveling out the sediment once or twice each month. The procedure was to shovel the sediment to someone outside who was holding a drum and then the filled drums were to be carted away. In the process, both liquid and solid materials fell off the drum onto the ground where they would be washed off. Andreini was also charged with loading railroad cars with Diamond’s product. When the

insides of these rail cars were washed down with water, the ef-fluent would seep onto the tracks and into the ground. Id. at 185

• A carbon absorption system was devised and installed in Sep-tember 1967. The carbon tower was able to remove dioxin at or below one part per million. Nevertheless, Diamond employ-ees acknowledged that monthly readouts starkly revealed the inadequacy of this approach. Indeed, in October 1968 the level was 8.4 parts per million; November 1968 was 9.3 parts per million, and December 1968 was 9.6 parts per million. Dia-mond’s employees admitted that “cooking” the TCP in the auto-

mains in place. This 24 inch cap would need to be maintained in perpetuity1. This is similar to having to replenish sand beaches, but the replenishment would take place underwater after storm damage or scouring occurs. Since we seem to have trouble managing simple infrastructure maintenance (such as keeping storm drains free to prevent flooding) It’s doubtful that we would perpetually maintain infrastructure that is underwater and out of sight.

• EPA acknowledged that the proposed capping tech-nology has been in use for about 10 years, so there is no long-term information or research about how the proposed cap would perform over longer time periods. EPA did acknowledge that annual mainte-nance is required. Three questions arise:1. Who will pay for and be responsible for annual

continual maintenance in perpetuity? 2. What happens when budgets (of whoever is

responsible for the maintenance) get tight? 3. Which regulatory authority will be responsible

for monitoring performance in perpetuity?EPA used the argument that the contaminated

sediments should not be buried in Newark Bay and covered with a cap because the cap would need to be maintained in perpetuity. I find this argument even more compelling when considering the possibility

of leaving bank to bank contamination with only 24 inches of sand on top and considering the site ‘remediated’. New Jersey has been subjected to more Superfund contamination than any other state in the country, it has the largest number of designated Super-fund sites, and has seen the inadequate cleanup of the Ringwood site, which was placed on the Superfund List a second time after it was supposed to be ‘cleaned up’. We should not let this happen to the Passaic River and its communities, which have suffered environ-mental degradation for too many decades. I hope the EPA will strongly reconsider their proposed remedy and choose Option 1.

1For a complete description of the Passaic Super-fund Site, the Proposed Remedies, and Disposal op-tions to to: http://www.epa.gov/region2/passaicriver/

continued on page 6

Landside cleanup at the Diamond Shamrock site along the banks of the Passaic River.


clave at 170 degrees centigrade occasionally produced TCP with 80 parts per million dioxin contamination. Additionally, a government document entitled “Herbicide Stock at Gulfport, Mississippi” indicates that, of the government’s stockpile of Agent Orange, the average dioxin content of the product manufactured by Diamond was greater than that of the product manufactured by the four other companies whose products were stored at that location. Id. at 213

• Despite the certain and docu-mented dangers of the dioxin produced in the TCP process, Diamond treated this substance no differently than it treated any of the nonchloracnegen-contain-ing products. Both the air and the ground, inside and outside

of the Lister Avenue plant, were regularly subjected to dioxin emissions through venting, and contamination from spills, leaks and “sloppy practices” in and around the plant. Id. at 213

• Overwhelming evidence was presented that Diamond knew about the release of dioxins from its plant and the migration of these substances to surrounding areas. Id. at 213

I have read a lot of court deci-sions since I started law school almost fifteen years ago, but I do not recall ever reading a court decision so thoroughly and clearly stating a party’s horrific actions. We want you to remember these quotes as you consider whether we should allow Diamond’s successors a less expensive, less thorough or less certain clean up.

They caused uncounted victims years of health problems,

they robbed the Passaic River from Newark, they caused billions of dollars of environmental harm so they could make more money and for no other reason. Shed no tears for them.

Make your voice heard on this extremely important issue.Comments on the Proposed Plan may be submitted in writing through August 20, 2014by email to: [email protected] Or mail to: Alice Yeh, Remedial Project Manager USEPA290 Broadway, New York, New York 10007-1866 (212) 637-4427

Worst Superfund Site continued from page 5


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health the crabbing ban was meant to safeguard? Sadly, from our per-spective it seems like they’ve been left mostly to fend for themselves.

We at Hackensack River-keeper continue to do our part. We maintain signs along the river and replace them when needed, reach to anglers and others, and most importantly conduct our Urban Watershed Education Program (UWEP). Each year that program educates and informs hundreds of middle school students who live within the watersheds of the Complex to the inherent dangers of consuming contaminated fish, crabs and shellfish. Our organiza-tion doesn’t have law enforcement powers but we have the power of persuasion and truth to help people live healthier and safer lives.

But enforcement is exactly what’s needed because education isn’t persuasive enough. Several years ago I attended a presentation by Dr. Angela Cristini of Ramapo College in which she described observing people openly crab-bing at Stephen Gregg Park in Bayonne. Such behavior is bad enough but even worse was that Dr. Cristini witnessed those same

people selling their illegal – and contaminated – catch to buyers in the parking lot! Soon afterward I had the opportunity to bring the situation to the attention of a DEP official. His response was, “We don’t want to go around busting poor people.” My response to him was, “So you’d rather they poison themselves and their children?” He had nothing to say to that.

In June we learned that the DEP had translated the 1999 crab signs into Mandarin, Korean, Pol-ish, Tagalog (Filipino) and Viet-namese and will soon be installing them alongside the others. While that is certainly a positive, step we feel that two others would go much further. First, use language that fishermen already understand. Instead of the text-heavy verbiage currently in use, simply stating: “These Waters are CLOSED to Crabbing and Shellfish Harvest-ing” makes more sense. Second, sending state Conservation Of-ficers (who do have full enforce-ment powers) to Gregg Park and other illegal crabbing hotspots will do much more to solve the prob-lem than all the signage combined. Few things speak louder than a uniformed CO with a badge on his chest, a Glock on his hip and a

violations book in his hand. Illegal crabbing may be the

worst problem, but it’s not the only one. On any given day at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus, entire families catch large num-bers of White Perch and take them home. While hook-and-line fishing isn’t prohibited, state advisories against the consumption of all finfish (perch included) from local waters are strong and unequivocal. In fact, in recent years only the advisory on Striped Bass has been lessened – and that only slightly.

Every day Hackensack River-keeper works toward the day when everyone will be able to safely consume fish – and crabs – from the river and all waterways of the NY/NJ Harbor Estuary. But that day isn’t here yet. And yes, all of us have the right to enjoy the bounty of those Public Trust Re-sources, but that right has been de-nied by polluters’ greed and the in-ability of elected officials to make them pay for what they did – and still do. So until the message is made clearer and officers show up on our waterfronts, we’ll continue to do all we can to educate and persuade people to stay healthy so they and their kids might one day enjoy our river’s bounty.

Crab Advisorycontinued from page 3


Once again Hackensack Riverkeeper is proud to partner with the City of Newark to offer Eco-Cruises on the Passaic River from June through October. For those who have explored the Hackensack and the Meadowlands with us, seeing the Passaic provides an amazing juxtaposition of the two urban waterways.

Most trips explore the Newark riverfront from the mouth of the Passaic at Newark Bay north to the city’s border with Belleville. Several Port Tours are also scheduled, all of which include an excursion (thanks to special permission from the Port Authority) up the Newark Shipping Channel for close up views of massive, ocean-going cargo ships.

All trips depart from beautiful Riverfront Park, located on the Passaic River at Raymond Boulevard, Newark, NJ. Just look for the “orange sticks”!

Costs: $15 per person / $5 for Newark residents

All trips are conducted on weekends and run two hours. Here’s the upcoming schedule:

Saturday, July 5, 10AM and Noon (Port Tour)Sunday, July 6, 2PM and 4PMSaturday, August 23, 10AM and Noon (Port Tour)Saturday, August 30, 10AM and NoonSunday, August 31, 2PM and 4PMSunday, September 7, 1PM and 3PM (Port Tour)Sunday, September 14, 11AM and 1PMSaturday, September 27, 10AM and NoonSaturday, October 18, 11AM and 1PMSunday, October 19, 11AM and 1PM

For reservations, contact Riverfront Program Co-ordinator Chris Caceres at (201) 341–8311 or email him at [email protected] with the date and time of the tour you’d like. Chris coordinates all the Passaic River trips listed above; he would love to hear from you – and we would love to introduce you to the Hackensack’s sister river. See you there!

For complete info about the tours and all water-front activities at Riverfront Park, please visit: http://newarksriver.wordpress.com/.

Join Us For an Eco-Cruise – on the Passaic River!You read about it in the Spring issue of Tidelines; here’s how you can do it

Join us on Saturday, July 12th from 10am-4pm at Governors Island, Hoboken’s Maxwell Place Park,

and venues all around our harbor and shores

For more information, or to sign up as a volunteer, visit www.CityofWaterDay.org

Letters to HackensackRIVERKEEPER

Dear Captain Bill Sheehan - I applaude all your efforts over the years to keep the river a clean and viable river for all to enjoy and treasure.If only we could convince the public that rivers are not dumping grounds!Were I many years younger and stronger to volunteer but that’s not possible so please accept my small donations.I wish you and your staff and many volunteers the best in their continued efforts to make the River a thing of Pride. Most sincerely, Caroline M. Sutton


Hackensack Riverkeeper and United Water present:

The Second Annual

Corporate Cup Challenge on beautiful Lake Tappan

Friday, July 25Arrival: 10:00 AM Race time: 11:00 AM Lunch: 12:00 PMLake Tappan, Washington Avenue North, Old Tappan, NJSpectators welcome! Lunch will be provided lakeside after the race!

Lake Tappan Paddle DaySaturday, July 26Rain Date: Sunday, July 27

Lake Tappan, Washington Avenue North, Old Tappan, NJ

Rentals Available- Reserve one today!

Registration for both events: www.HackensackRiverkeeper.org or call 201-968-0808

2014

Half-mile and 1-mile legs (thus the need for 6 team members) – We encourage having a team of 3 females and 3 males - or a minimum 2 femalesRequested donation to Hackensack Riverkeeper: $250. Limited availabilty, please register by Friday, July 18.

Enter your company to compete against other local firms in an exciting paddle race!The winner will be awarded the prestigious Corporate Cup!

A Family Friendly Open Day of Paddle!


Sixth Annual Reservoir Challenge Brings out the Best!By Joanna Marino

The day of the Reservoir Challenge at Oradell Reservoir started out bright and warm. Volunteers swarmed to set up tables and chairs, put up banners, unrack the kayaks, and make sure that everything was in place for the 5k and 10k races. Eager racers started arriving that morning for the 9:30AM running start of the races. The reservoir was flat and calm until the racers started getting on the water. As soon as the racers were in position the wind started gusting – put-ting the real “challenge” in the Reservoir Challenge. Gerald Kastner finished the 10k race in his specialty boat in a swift 58 minutes 18 seconds and the 5k race was completed most quickly by Igor Ioshpa in 33 minutes 37 seconds.

The Mayor’s Cup Race topped off the day’s rac-ing events. Twelve mayors or their delegates took to the water and tried for victory. It was Mayor Ray Cywinski of Demarest who once again took the First Place prize – for the fourth time! Although every-

one agrees that New Milford Mayor Ann Subrizi’s delegate – Councilman Diego Robalino – with his red wig swept the “Best in Show” category.

Rosie’s Weenie Wagon provided fun lunch fare with her original gourmet hot dogs. The kimchi hot dog was delish! The Joisey Devils entertained us with their high-energy cover songs and ushered us into the guided paddle portion of the day.

This event is a unique opportunity for all partici-pants to enjoy the beautiful Oradell Reservoir which is normally off-limits to paddlers. If you missed it this year be sure to join us next year for your oppor-tunity to experience this gem in our watershed.

We’d like to thank United Water, Charlie Browns, Bank of New Jersey, Grand Dynamics International, Hackensack University Medical Center, Rosie’s Weenie Wagon, and The Coachworks for their support of the Reservoir Challenge. And a special thanks to the Emergency Services of Bergen County, Haworth and Oradell for keeping us safe.

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This year featured women’s categories. 10K winner Debra Anderson (c) and 5K winner Maureen McDowell (r).

And they’re off! This year began with a running start. Our tandems provide family fun and years of bragging rights.

Or relax, kickback and enjoy an afternoon guided paddle.

The ladies of United Water enjoy the day and cheer on the paddlers.

Winners of the mens’ divisions show off their medals in a line up with the captain.


Dine to Donate

Please present this coupon when you dine at the Blue Moon(s) listed above and 20% of your bill (excluding tax and gratuity) will be donated to the organization listed above. Seating will be based on first come, first serve, we will not be accepting reservations on these evenings. This offer cannot be combined with any other promotions, offers, or coupons. This offer is only valid for the date listed above and only at the location listed above. Please contact the restaurant directly to see if your town is in our delivery zones. No customer discount will be given.

Community Nightto support

Wednesday , September 17, 2014Englewood 11:30AM- 9:00PM

Lunch, Dinner, Take-Out & Delivery**Also Applies to Catering and Gift Cards**

Blue Moon Mexican CafeBlue Moon Mexican Cafe

www.BlueMoonMexicanCafe.com

Mayor’s Cup ChallengeFirst Demarest Mayor

Ray CywinskiSecond Westwood Mayor

John Birkner, Jr.Third Bergenfield Mayor

Norman Schmelz

Reservoir Challenge 5K WinnersRace Race

NumberName Finish

TimeSpecialty # 216 Igor Ioshpa 33:38.0SK1-Recreational (Men)

# 206 David Lewis 40:14.5

SK1-Recreational (Women)

#221 Maureen McDowell 41:40.4

Tandem #218 John and Kyle Birkner 38:29.1Canoe #219 John and Mike Shea 54:26.1

Reservoir Challenge 10K WinnerRace Race

NumberName Finish

TimeSpeciality # 2 Gerald Kastner 58:18.1SK2-Race Kayak (Men)

# 9 Akif Zaman 1:23:42.0

SK2-Race Kayak (Women)

# 1 Debra Anderson 1:32:38.0

SK1-Recreational (Men)

# 8 Chuck Beucler 1:25:21.4

Canoe # 5 Kenneth and Bill Vogel 1:32:38.0

Eligible groups include non-profit schools and 501(c) organizations. Donation amount excludes proceeds from tax, gratuity, gift card and retail purchases. Valid for dine-in, take-out, online orders, catering or curbside service. Alcoholic beverages included. Not valid on delivery. Event proceeds void if flyers are distributed in or near the restaurant. Manager, please attach this flyer to the guest check.

Mayor Ray Cwinski is no stranger to this race. He is a four-time winner of the Mayor’s Cup. And it’s only our 6th season. Come on mayors...it’s time to start training.


Our First Bergen County EarthFest OverpeckFriends, families, food, vendors, festivities, craft beer garden and music to celebrate our Earth

On April 26, over 2500 people joined Bergen County and Hackensack Riverkeeper to celebrate Earth Day during our inaugural festival at the New Overpeck County Park.

County Executive Kathleen Donavan started off our morning with the official ribbon cutting for the new kayak dock. A big thanks goes out to EZ Dock of Seaside Heights, for completing the new dock in time for EarthFest. The music of Ridgefield Park’s Ghandarva provided the soundtrack of our first-ever Recycled Regatta.

The Recycled Regatta was quite the spectacle. Even though we only had two teams this year, they gave us quite a show! Team Olay Olay (Girl Scout Troup 124 of River Edge) beat out Team Gar-Barge from an engineering standpoint. The young ladies even helped rescue the Gar-Barge from a watery grave. Both teams did an amazing job and thouroughly entertained the spectators! We invite you to start planning your boat design now for next year’s race!

Later that morning attention turned to the Fishing Derby sponsored by Ramsey Outdoor and East Jersey Trout Unlimited behind the park’s main stage. Kids of all ages angled for the biggest fish and great prizes from Ramsey.

On the main stage everyone was entertained with a performance by the Center for Modern Dance Education; and the music of Loretta Hagen, Back to the Garden 69, and Frantic! WDHA DJ Kim Mulligan and WNBC corre-spondent Brian Thompson were on hand to keep the show moving along.

Food trucks and facepainting, wolves and bats, hotdogs and empanadas, recycled birdhouses and repurposed wine corks were found throughout the fairgrounds, but ice cream topped off the day for the kids big and small! Great Lakes and Kohler kept the beer flowing all afternoon until the rains came in. An unexpected added attraction was the Blue Sky Amusements carnival hosted by the Teaneck V.F.W. They generously donated a portion of the day’s pro-ceeds to Hackensack Riverkeeper. Thank you!

We can’t say enough to thank all the folks with the WeLoveU Foundation for coming out to our Earth Day Cleanup on Sunday. It was our biggest cleanup ever, almost 400 people. Needless to say it was the most garbage we ever collected at one cleanup.

Special Thanks to:The County of BergenCounty Executive

Kathleen DonovanBergen County

Dept. of Parks

East Jersey Trout Unlimited

Great Lakes BrewingKohler DistributorsTown Motors SubaruInserra ShopRite

PSE&GUnited WaterHackensack University

Medical CenterHaftek Concrete

Washout Systems

Ramsey OutdoorsPublic Lands Every DayScarinci HollenbeckTeaneck VFWThe Coachworks

Blue Sky AmusementsThe RecordWDHAWhole FoodsBalthazar

WeLoveU volunteers pose with garbage collected on the Palisades Park side of Overpeck Creek. Look at all those tires!

Gar-Barge crew off to a tenuous start trying to get launched for the race. Team OlayOlay watches as one Gar-Barge team mem-ber is fished from the water.!


Summer Started with a SPLASH CleanupVolunteers show up to get rid of the trash.

By Joanna MarinoWe had a picture perfect day

for this year’s SPLASH event. The SPLASH Summer Solstice clean-up was a Waterkeeper Alliance SPLASH Series Event, presented nationally by Toyota and is done annually in support of the National Waterkeeper Alliance. This year’s SPLASH event took place at Lau-rel Hill County Park in Secaucus. Set up started for this event days before with the arrival of a dump-ster donated by Wilenta Carting. We had the essential help of the Hudson County Parks Department which provided us with the use of a flatbed trailer for our stage and brought us chairs to use that day.

Volunteers braved the midday sun and heat to make the Hack-ensack River cleaner. Some took canoes out on the river to fetch trash that was unreachable from the shore. Other folks walked

along the banks, paths, and roads interspersed in and around the park picking up trash. Still more volunteers made several trips out onto the marsh with Captain Bill on the Edward Abbey looking to fetch larger and more daunting debris. An industrial boom and several large tractor trailer tires were among the larger pieces of trash that were collected from the marsh. All of the volunteers worked tirelessly in the June heat!

The second part of the day started with speeches by Captain Bill, Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli, Secaucus Environmental Coordinator Amanda Nesheiwat, and Waterkeeper Alliance Execu-tive Director Marc Yaggi. They all had wonderful things to say about Hackensack Riverkeeper and its role in preserving and defending the watershed.

After the speeches ended the an-nual potluck BBQ started! The BBQ was accompanied by the musical stylings of Frantic (www.franticband.com), the biggest 3-piece band in the universe. The burgers and hot dogs were gener-ously donated by Ducks Unlim-ited. We had several tricky tray baskets to win including Bath & Body Works items, Ducks Unlim-ited t-shirts, a bathroom scale, and a $75 gift certificate to Eastern Mountain Sports. The BBQ was a wonderful time, a beautiful day for it, and it was topped by a perfect sunset over the Hackensack River. We would like to thank Water-keeper Alliance, our national event sponsor, Toyota, and our local sponsors Wilenta Carting, the law offices of Krivit & Krivit, and Ducks Unlimited for their support in making this event a success!

Top (left to right) Marc Yaggi, Waterkeeper’s ED; Mayor Michael Ganilli and Amanda Nesheiwat; and Captain SheehanBelow (left to right) Charlie Stelling man-aging the grill; and members of the SPLASH cleanup crew.


By Hugh M. CarolaIt seems that each year I go

through the same ritual: I ask myself, “Do I still want to do the World Series or should I just do the paperwork and let the Riv-erCreepers (who all are much better birders then me) handle the ‘birdwork’?” Each year I choose the former and am always glad I did. This year was different. I dispensed with ritual and was completely looking forward to those annual eighteen hours of birding intensity. But sadly, it was not to be.

Many of you reading this already know that I was unable to lead the Hackensack River-Creepers because my dad, Robert Carola, passed away on May 8;

just two days before the WSB. As hard as he tried, the proud Navy vet and hardcore Green Bay Packers fan just couldn’t hold off cancer’s inevitable “victory”. On May 13 we laid him to rest beside my mom and grandparents.

Even before dad’s passing knocked me off the roster we were already down a man due to Dave Kaplan being sidelined with illness. However three wonderful, extraor-dinary people stepped up and made the day a complete success: René Buccinna, NJ Audubon’s WSB coordinator; and of course our team mates Kerul Kassel and Ray Duffy. René gave us the go-ahead to field a 2-person team (something not usu-ally allowed); while Kerul and Ray took to the field in earnest. And then some. By the time they finished, our

dynamic duo listed 125 species (our second-best showing ever), includ-ing four never-before-listed birds. I cannot thank them enough for what they did for me and for Hackensack Riverkeeper.

And of course we greatly ap-preciate our longtime Corporate Sponsor, Shop Rite Supermarkets, which supports our team and the entire WSB by catering the Finish Line Brunch in Cape May. While we were unable to avail ourselves of a loaner vehicle from our Corpo-rate Partner Toyota of Hackensack due to my absence, we salute them nonetheless and look forward to working with them again in 2015.

Of course, every year I reserve the biggest thanks to those who made the per-species pledges and WSB-earmarked donations in sup-port of Hackensack Riverkeeper. This year I also extend my heartfelt thanks to the wonderful people who made WSB donations in honor of my dad. The outpouring of sympa-thy and support was something I will never forget.

Being of the “old school” my dad didn’t always understand what working for a nonprofit was about but he knew that I loved it and that was good enough for him. He didn’t care so much about saving wetlands or creating public river access; what he did care about was me being em-ployed at something I liked doing. Early on in my career, he and mom (who passed in 2011) told me, “We never saw you this happy in any job; it’s so nice to see you finally found a place to shine.” And they say that parents are the last ones to know. Go figure.

World Series of Birding 2014: Of Birds, Family and the Finest of FriendsRiverCreepers, donors step up in a big way in the aftermath of loss.

Purple Martin and nesting gourds. Native Americans first attrracted Martins to nest near their villages because of their ability to consume large numbers of mosquitoes and other annoying insects.

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NJ Audubon Society’s 31st Annual World Series of Birding

May 10, 2014

BrantCanada GooseMute SwanWood DuckGadwallAmerican Black DuckMallardBlue-winged TealNorthern ShovelerGreen-winged TealBufflehead*Red-breasted MerganserRuddy DuckWild TurkeyHorned GrebeDouble-crested CormorantGreat Blue HeronGreat EgretSnowy EgretGreen Heron Black-crowned Night-heronYellow-crowned Night-heronGlossy IbisBlack VultureTurkey VultureOspreyBald EagleBroad-winged Hawk*Red-tailed HawkPeregrine FalconClapper RailSemipalmated PloverKilldeerSolitary SandpiperSpotted SandpiperGreater Yellowlegs

Lesser YellowlegsSemipalmated SandpiperLeast SandpiperPectoral SandpiperShort-billed DowitcherBonaparte’s GullRing-billed GullHerring GullGreat Black-backed GullForster’s TernMourning DoveRock Pigeon Monk ParakeetBarn OwlCommon NighthawkChimney SwiftBelted KingfisherRed-bellied WoodpeckerDowny WoodpeckerHairy WoodpeckerNorthern FlickerEastern Wood-PeweeYellow-bellied FlycatcherLeast FlycatcherEastern PhoebeGreat Crested FlycatcherEastern KingbirdWhite-eyed VireoYellow-throated VireoWarbling VireoRed-eyed VireoPurple Martin*Tree SwallowNorthern Rough-winged

SwallowCliff SwallowBarn Swallow

Blue JayAmerican CrowFish CrowCommon RavenBlack-capped ChickadeeTufted TitmouseWhite-breasted NuthatchCarolina WrenHouse WrenBlue-gray GnatcatcherRuby-crowned KingletVeerySwainson’s ThrushWood ThrushAmerican RobinGray CatbirdNorthern MockingbirdEuropean StarlingCedar WaxwingNorthern ParulaYellow WarblerMagnolia WarblerBlackburnian WarblerBlack-throated Blue WarblerYellow-rumped WarblerBlack-throated Green WarblerPalm WarblerBlackpoll WarblerBlack-and-white WarblerAmerican RedstartCape May WarblerWorm-eating WarblerOvenbirdNorthern WaterthrushCommon YellowthroatEastern Towhee

Chipping SparrowSavannah SparrowSong SparrowSwamp SparrowWhite-throated SparrowWhite-crowned SparrowScarlet TanagerNorthern CardinalRose-breasted GrosbeakBobolink*Red-winged BlackbirdBoat-tailed GrackleCommon GrackleBrown-headed CowbirdOrchard OrioleBaltimore OrioleHouse FinchAmerican GoldfinchHouse Sparrow

*Four new listings upping our cummulative

list to 182 species.

Other highlights: 16 Warblers13 Waterfowl species10 Shorebirds

The 2014 Hackensack RiverCreepers are:

Ray Duffy, co-captainKerul Kassel, co-captain

Next WSB: May 9, 2015

Hackensack RiverCreepers • Tally: 125 species


By Hugh M. CarolaIt’s said that every cloud has

a silver lining. If that’s true, then the “cloud” that was the winter of 2013-14 gave us the “silver lining” of a wonderful, drawn-out spring migration. Spring gave us lingering Snowy Owls, more Black Skimmers than ever before and right now there are enough raptors nesting along the river to worry every pigeon, rabbit and shallow-swimming fish for miles around. And speaking of nesting raptors…

This year seven pairs of Os-preys are nesting along or near the lower Hackensack River. There are nests in Teaneck, Carlstadt, Lyndhurst (2), Kearny (2) and Jer-sey City. The last one – a purpose-built nesting platform located on the grounds of PSE&G’s Hudson Generating station – has been occupied the longest, having first produced chicks in 2007. The suc-cess of that pioneer nest certainly led the way for the amazing return of Ospreys to our watershed; and inspired the utility to construct two additional platforms at Hud-son earlier this year.

It’s also said that from small things, big things surely come. That first small step in Jersey City, taken at the request of Captain Bill Sheehan over fifteen years ago, has certainly led to some-thing big: the establishment of an Osprey colony in our watershed. But lest you think this column is only about Ospreys, pray, by all means, read on…

Alder Flycatcher – Single birds were observed in cotton-wood trees (which are related to alders) on 5/29 at Liberty State

Park in Jersey City; and on 5/31 at Kearny Marsh.

American Kestrel – This di-minutive falcon species has been declining in recent decades, so it’s always uplifting to receive reports of them. Several were noted on 3/10 hunting over the closed landfills adjacent to Richard W. DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, NJ.

American Woodcock – A single male was heard calling the evening of 3/11 at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus, NJ. Another was observed in a Saddle Brook, NJ yard on 3/16 & 17.

Bald Eagle – March arrived in a most auspicious way with three eagles seen on 3/1 soaring over our offices at 231 Main Street in Hackensack. A week earlier on 2/25, seven eagles (2 adult, 5 im-mature) were observed perched in tall Cottonwoods at Hackensack’s Foschini Park. Local nesting pairs were confirmed in Ridgefield Park (the Overpeck pair) on 3/15 and at Greenbrook Sanctuary in Alpine, NJ on 3/16. Nesting eagles also returned to sites at United Water’s Oradell Reservoir and Woodcliff Lake. Both adult and imma-ture birds were observed on the Kane Tract wetlands in Carlstadt throughout May and June.

Barn Owl – It was a real sur-prise this spring when a pair was discovered nesting inside a box girder underneath the eastbound Route 3 Bridge over the Hacken-sack River on 5/8.

Black Skimmer – It was a tru-ly “Skimmerific” springtime with upwards of thirty of these unique, sleek birds being observed, pho-tographed and enjoyed along the river - mostly in the neighborhood

of River Barge Park in Carlstadt, NJ – throughout the months of May and June.

Cinnamon Teal – Extremely rare east of the Rockies, nonethe-less a single member of this duck species was observed by differ-ent groups of birders at DeKorte and the Sawmill Creek Wildlife Management Area in Lyndhurst/Kearny through 5/28.

Common Merganser – A late lingerer was spotted on 5/14 in the river just off Fairleigh Dickinson University’s Metropolitan campus in Hackensack/Teaneck, NJ. An-other (the same?) was seen 5/31 in the river near the BCUA wastewa-ter treatment plant in Little Ferry.

Eastern Phoebe – A great harbinger of spring, one was observed at Schmidt’s Woods in Secaucus on 3/11.

Fox Sparrow – Several of this large sparrow species were heard singing at Schmidt’s on 3/11 (which was a pretty good day at that small wooded park).

Great Black-backed Gull – Two nesting pairs – with chicks – have been noted near the mouth of the river in Jersey City and Ke-arny atop ruins of the NY Central RR bridge.

Great Cormorant – This year’s late-arriving spring may have contributed to one of these large birds being seen (and call-ing) over Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus on 4/28.

Marsh Wren – On 3/2, the wetlands at the Teaneck Creek Conservancy were where this soon-to-be-numerous species was first reported in our area in 2014.

Northern Harrier – A pair of these Meadowlands nesting (and

Hackensack WatersHed Field notes


Endangered Species) was ob-served on 3/10 at DeKorte and on 5/12 over the Sawmill WMA.

Osprey – Our first report of 2014 was of a single bird flying and perching in the vicinity of the Bergen County Utilities Authority (BCUA) treatment plant in Little Ferry, NJ on 2/21. By late May a record seven nesting pairs were confirmed in our watershed.

Peregrine Falcon – What we believe to be the same female we “met” last year defending territory on the westbound Route 3 bridge is back – but as of 6/10 she’s got a mate and three chicks with her! Amazingly, a couple miles downriver in Secaucus another pair is raising two chicks in a nest on the decommissioned NJ Transit Boonton Line bridge. And once again, the Route 46 bridge over the river is home to another nesting pair, this time with three chicks.

Pied-billed Grebe – A single bird was noted June 1-3 swim-ming at Lincoln Park West in Jersey City, within the area of re-stored saltmarsh along the Hack-ensack River. Hopefully there’s a mate and a nest as well.

Red-headed Woodpecker – Finally a non-Ridgewood report! A single bird was reported on 3/3 in Harrington Park.

Red-necked Grebe – One of these large grebes was seen just off Liberty State Park on 3/1. The next day three were noted swimming just off the Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor (the former Military Ocean Terminal). A pair was seen at River Barge Park in Carlstadt on 3/14.

Red-tailed Hawk – Nest-ing pairs were back (with chicks already fledged) along the river in Carlstadt and up underneath the NJ Turnpike bridge over Berry’s Creek Canal in East Rutherford.

Ring-necked Duck – A nice-sized flock of eighteen of these divers was observed in the river near Kenneth B. George Park in River Edge on 3/4.

Rough-legged Hawk – This past winter brought decent num-bers of this large Buteo to our

area; the last report was received on 3/10 from DeKorte.

Snowy Owl – As winter began its slow transition to spring, lingering owls were still being seen in the Meadowlands: two at DeKorte on 3/2 and single birds near Valley Brook Ave. in Lynd-hurst on 3/4 and 3/8.

Tree Swallow – With tons of snow still on the ground and insects still in hibernation, an intrepid half-dozen of these birds was seen at DeKorte on 2/23.

White-winged Scoter – Usu-ally seen on the ocean or in bays, a small flock of four (1 drake, 3 hens) was observed in a most unusually location: just off Mill Creek Point in Secaucus, NJ on 2/22. A single duck was noted just off the Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor on 3/2.

Thanks to all our spotters and as always, a tip o’ the naturalist’s hat (from A to Z) to: Anonymous, Jay Auslander, Pete Bacinski, Scott Barnes, L. Carmody, Ray Duffy, Gene Dunton, Rich Dwyer, Thomas Halter, Gil Hawkins, Lynn Kramer, Joseph Labriola, Lorraine Matys, Bill Sheehan, Robert Somes and Mary Ellen Woods.

(left) Red-necked,; (center) Grebe Cinnamon Teal; (right) Barn Owl

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By Ivan KossakWhen I think of the American Redstart (Setophaga

ruticilla), I am reminded of a Disney-esque wood sprite; an enchanted creature that through its energetic hopping from branch to branch and emphatic singing, seems to be attempting to communicate some kind of vital message to the humans around him. “Redstarts”, as they are almost invariably referred to by birders, are representatives of the group of birds collectively known as wood warblers. Warblers are small, active creatures that inhabit mature woodlands and transi-tional habitats throughout North America.

When it comes to Redstarts, that activity seems to be ratcheted up several notches. It is rare in my experience to see an American Redstart perched in one place for very long. They heighten their visibility by moving about constantly at or near eye level, vocaliz-ing further into the day than most warblers. If this was not enough, both male and female American Redstarts twitch their tails and spread their tail feathers during their other movements. In fact, “start” is an antiquated term for tail. It is not easy for a bird only 5¼ inches long to be so visible but the Redstart manages the feat. For the birder, a look at these birds is worth the walk.

Adult male American Redstarts are black on the head, wings, breast and back; white on the belly and show bright orange patches on the wings and sides of the breast. This black and orange motif prompts me to think of the Redstart as “The Halloween Bird.” The females sport a similar pattern but the black and orange is replaced by gray and yellow. Howard E. Parkhurst in his The Birds’ Calendar (1894) describes the pair thus, “If the male Redstart is a fiery coal, the female is a trail of ashes in his wake.” Young males look similar to females but the yellow is darker, becoming closer to the orange of the adult males. Redstarts are unusual among warblers in that it takes two years for the males to acquire the striking black and orange adult plumage.

The song of the adult American Redstart is an emphatic series of 4-7 somewhat buzzy “wee” and “see” notes. This song is highly variable. One birder I know once said “If you can’t figure out that warbler song, it’s probably a Redstart.”

American Redstarts are common over most of their breeding range which encompasses the eastern half of the United States and southern Canada. West of the Mississippi this range extends west from Ne-braska and Wyoming north and west through Canada. They winter for the most part in Central and South America as well as in the Caribbean. They can be found breeding in most of the northern half of New Jersey as well as forested areas in the southern part of the state. In our watershed they can be found fairly easily in migration but limit their nesting activities to the extreme northeast section of Bergen County. The woodlands around State Line Lookout and behind the Rockleigh town hall look like excellent places to find this bird.

Birds of the Hackensack:American Redstart

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American Redstart

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By Hugh M. CarolaThis year’s applications took a very long time

to start filtering in. In the three and a half months between New Year’s Day when we announced the scholarship and one week before the Earth Day deadline, we’d received only four. But during that final week an even dozen came in, making a total of sixteen for us to review. Out of them all, one applica-tion stood head and shoulders above the rest, making our decision a complete no-brainer.

On June 17 Captain Bill and I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Julianne Goodman at the Bergen County Academies and presenting her with the 2014 Ron Vellekamp Environmental Scholarship. The $1,000 award can be used to help cover any costs associated with her first year at college. This fall Julianne will join the Class of 2018 at the University of Pennsylva-nia (UPenn) College of Arts and Sciences. According to her application essay, she plans “to study environ-mental economics and gather the necessary skills to tackle sustainable solutions to climate change.”

Each year every applicant is encouraged to docu-ment her/his environmental and conservation activi-ties during their high school years but Julianne’s went back as far as middle school. As a seventh grader at Eisenhower MS in Wyckoff she founded the school’s Go Green club and served as its president for two years until her graduation in 2010. Her high school accomplishments are literally too numerous to list but mention must be made of her participation in the American Youth Leadership Program to Malaysia & Singapore in 2013. Sponsored by the U.S. State De-partment, she and 17 other American students spent one month last summer working with students from Asia and Europe on a multifaceted program focused on environmental sustainability.

“Julianne presented us with such an amazing list of environmental education, advocacy and action bona fides such as we have never seen before,” said Captain Bill Sheehan. “After reviewing them all and then meeting her in person, I’m certain that she is destined to do many good things in the service of our earth, its people and wildlife.”

Julianne is also the first scholarship recipient to live outside of the Hackensack River Watershed. But as the award is open to all graduating seniors who live in and/or attend school within the ‘shed, one

whose alma mater literally sits on the bank of the river is, as they say, a natural.

The late Ronald Vellekamp was a science teacher in Ridgefield, New Jersey. During his life he also served as a Palisades Interstate Park ranger, Scout leader, and trustee of Hackensack Riverkeeper. The scholarship that bears his name is a fitting tribute to an educator whose life was lived in the service of others. Applications for the 2015 Scholarship will be accepted beginning in January.

From Wyckoff to the Banks of the Hackensack RiverMeet Julianne Goodman – our 2014 Ron Vellekamp Environmental Scholar

Julianne Goodman accepting her award from Captains Bill Sheehan and Hugh Carola.


Quidis Cleanup–Lincoln Park West, Jersey City, April 11, 2014 It was a gorgeous spring day for the first corpo-rate cleanup of the 2014 season. An early morning reconnaissance of the area revealed a beautiful Wilson’s Snipe hunting along the shoreline. The Quidis employees were an enthusiastic group! Some employees put on waders to walk through the marsh while others cleaned along the shoreline. A couple of very determined volunteers spent the day digging buried tires out of the sand along the water.

Volunteer CornerBy Lynn Kramer

New Milford Green Acres Cleanup– Girl Scout Troop 1506–April 12, 2014 This was another beautiful spring day where Hackensack Riverkeeper teamed up with the Girl Scouts. Tina Young and her troop of Scouts hosted a public cleanup behind the swim club. Lots of the bottles, paper, and other consumer waste was found along the woods adja-cent to the river.

Liberty State Park Cleanup–April 13, 2014Organized by our Watershed Ambassador, Chris Marinello, and the Nature Interpretive Center at Liberty State Park, this scenic cleanup was also graced with exceptional weather. Early in the day the Park Ranger gave us a tour of the park and spoke of their future plans for the Nature Center. The highlight was a watching a red tailed hawk catch breakfast right before our eyes! We’re pretty sure it was a squirrel.

Fairleigh Dickenson University Cleanup–April 16, 2014We had to scrape the ice off the windshield for this cleanup which we hold annually in conjunction with FDU’s Earth Day festivities. It was too cold and windy to get out the canoes and we spent a few hours in many layers of clothing huddled around hot cups of coffee. Word gradually spread among the stu-dents about the clean up and things picked up. It ended up being a good cleanup with lots of student involve-ment on both sides of the river.


Town Motors Cleanup–McKay Park–May 18, 2014 This was a fun cleanup with a small but terrific group of high-energy high school seniors from Bergen Academies. The stream we were to have cleaned was cut off by con-struction so we moved to a small adjoining creek. Wearing waders, the volunteers discovered an entire area filled with discarded old gym equipment and household stuff which they proceeded to haul across the creek, over a chain-linked fence and into Charlie’s truck in efficient assembly line fashion. We ended up filling a dump truck’s worth of garbage. Great kids! Great day!

Overpeck Palisades Park Cleanup–April 27, 2014 In conjunction with EarthFest, this was possibly the largest cleanup in the history of Hackensack Riverkeeper with an attendance close to 400 people. Most of the volunteers were from the WeLoveU Foundation –who were a very well organized and hard working group of volunteers! Groups of 100, led by team leaders equipped with walkie-talkies maintained contact with each other and kept the garbage moving. When there was too much debris to fit in Charlie’s truck, they formed a 100-person assembly line running from the woods to the finish line. It was a perfect finale to Earth Day weekend.

Newark Cleanup–Riverbank Park–May 2, 2014The park itself was relatively clean but the river bank south of the park was a clean up crew’s paradise! The Panasonic employees are experienced volunteers and went right to work with no shortage of debris to pick up. Captain Bill, who brought the Edward Abbey to the cleanup gave small ecotours to rotating groups of volunteers to help them familiarize themselves with their new surroundings on the Passaic. The find of the day was a rusted, old roller skate, the kind that used to clip onto your shoes from the 50’s. Unfortunately though, no skate key!

Wolf Creek Cleanup–Ridgefield–May 19, 2014 For the second year in a row a cleanup was held at Wolf Creek and was sponsored by the Ridgefield Environ-mental Commission for students from the Ridgefield Memorial High School Spanish Language Class and their teacher Mrs. Olga Escobar. There were 17 students involved in this successful 2-hour long clean up. Thank you to all involved!


By Christopher MarinelloI am sad to say that this

is my last Tidelines column. My term as your 2013-2014 Watershed Ambassador is coming to an end and I couldn’t be happier to have had the opportunity to serve in the Hackensack River Watershed. Over the past ten months I met and worked with many terrific people who are devoted to better-ing our environment. I’ve completed over 80 water-shed related presentations, conducted 35 biological and visual stream assessments, and accumulated over 500 volunteer hours from the great people who joined in my events.

I wish to thank all of the teachers who invited me into their classrooms to teach their students about non-point and point source pollution. I was also able to reach out to lots of students through Captain Hugh’s Combo programs. Throughout the spring, many school groups came out to Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus to take advantage of these environmen-tal education activities. When not on the boat with the captain, the students worked with me onshore learning about how pollution that lands on the streets makes its way into our streams and eventually out into the Hackensack River. I had a blast doing these programs and would like to give many thanks to Hugh for allowing me to be a part of them and for be-ing an awesome supervisor!

I got the chance to work with some great groups and organizations this year. A special thanks to Mike Ruscigno and Pat Hilliard of the Bayonne Nature Club. Together we hosted a shoreline cleanup near the city’s 16th Street Park. Despite snowy weather, we cleaned up a large amount of the trash and debris. Another big thank-you goes out to the staff of Liberty State Park for helping me organize a cleanup there.

There was a lot of small garbage debris from Hurricane Sandy still scattered along the sides of a trail, and we re-moved most of it.

I also had the pleasure of helping the Hoboken Green Team with Rain Barrel training. At that event I taught residents about the role of Green In-frastructure and how it helps mitigate the effects of stormwater – which often causes flooding in their city. All attend-ees then built rain barrels which they took home and installed.

Along with watershed presenta-tions, I taught two school groups how to conduct Biological Stream assess-ments. These included in class pre-

sentations where we went over the various benthic macroinvertebrates that we might find in the streams, sampling techniques, and stream safety. Afterwards the students, teachers and I went to a nearby stream, where we caught creatures that we later identified and used to judge the quality of the stream. Not only did the trainings give students relevant field experience; they showed the importance of citizen science.

I really value all the wonderful experiences I had as a Watershed Ambassador and am very grateful to have served my term with Hackensack Riverkeeper. Being able to work closely with Captain Bill and his crew has allowed me to make the absolute most out of my term of service. Thank you all so very much.

As for me, I’ve accepted a graduate assistant-ship position at Montclair State University in their Sustainability Science program. While I continue on the path of helping make communities more sustain-able, I hope to continue working with the Watershed Ambassador Program, as it has done great things and will continue to do so for many years to come. Please make sure to reach out to next year’s ambas-sador who will begin in September. It was a pleasure serving as your ambassador this year, and I hope you continue fighting to keep our waters clean!

WMA 5 Ambassador UpdateAmbassador finishes term leaving a cleaner watershed

Chris conducting a Volunteer Stream Monitoring Training with students from Park Ridge High School.


At the helm continued from page 2

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waterfront enhancements on the Hackensack River.

As you know, Hackensack Riverkeeper is about much more than fishing, boating and hosting events. We are first and foremost a clean water advocacy organiza-tion dedicated to the protection, preservation and restoration of the Hackensack River Watershed.

Over the years our advocacy has led to collegial relationships with the US Army Corps of En-gineers, NJ Meadowlands Com-mission (both former adversar-ies), and the Bergen and Hudson County Parks Departments. Litigation has led to the valuable partnerships we now enjoy with United Water, the City of Bayonne and the Village of Ridgefield Park. Our Corporate River Stewardship program engages dozens of com-panies large and small each year in active conservation. Environmen-tal advocacy, education, action and litigation is the fourfold heart of Hackensack Riverkeeper.

You can enjoy our events, rent our kayaks, relax on Eco-Cruises, fish off docks we helped build and bird in the wetlands & woods we helped protect. However, we must remain ever vigilant. Right now there are forces looming that threaten the very victories we all worked so hard to achieve. Here are some examples:

As you read in our cover story, Hackensack Riverkeeper contin-ues the fight to secure justice for the lower Passaic River and the people who live alongside it in Es-sex, Hudson, Bergen and Passaic Counties. As our attorney Chris Len ably explains, the greatest impediment we face is the legacy of Diamond Shamrock and its

refusal to accept responsibility for creating the worst Superfund site in America. But it’s a fight we will win.

At this moment under the guise of ‘flood protection’ for-eign nationals and ivory tower academics are conspiring to undo wetlands protections guaranteed by the Meadowlands Master Plan of 2004. When Chris pointed out that the Clean Water Act prevents much of what they hope to do, their Dutch-accented response was, “Acts can be changed.”

We continue to oppose attempts by the Christie Administration and the NJ Legislature to make it easier to build in flood-prone areas under the guise of “streamlining the permit process.” Many of those

very same places were devastated by Hurricanes Irene and Sandy. Despite everyone claiming Sandy was a game-changer, it continues to be business as usual in Trenton.

All of which leads me to once again ask you to stand with us morally and financially as we con-tinue the ongoing fight for clean water, public access, protected habitats and your right to enjoy them all. Your support empow-ers us to do all of those things. Whatever you can contribute to the cause is gratefully appreciated. My staff and I would love the op-portunity to thank you in person at your river.

Yours in conservation,

NON-PROFIT ORGU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT NO. 451

HACKENSACK, NJ07606

231 Main Street, Hackensack, NJ 07601-7304 • 201-968-0808 • HackensackRiverkeeper.org

HackensackRIVERKEEPER®- Protecting The Public’s Right to:

• Clean, Plentiful Drinking Water• Public Access To Local Waters• Open Space Preservation

• Wildlife & Habitat Conservation• Safe Boating, Swimming, Paddling, Fishing

HackensackRIVERKEEPER®Member of

SAVE THE DATE!

Annual Awards Celebration& Sustainable Seafood Fest

For more information contact [email protected] or call 201-968-0808

Tuesday, October 7, 2014 Florentine Gardens,Rivervale, NJ Cocktail reception starts at 7PM

Honoring Mayor John DeRienzoand Inserra Shoprite Markets

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Hey Anglers–Check this out!Report your catch to Captain Hugh and we’ll include it in Tideline’s Fieldnotes!In April, Larry Ball caught this 39-pound Striped Bass in the Hackensack River just off of Laurel Hill Park. Congratulations Larry! We are always looking for wildlife reports to add to Capt. Hugh’s Field Notes; and we are happy to see that the river offers some EXCELLENT fishing!

Anatomy of America’s Worst Superfund Site · mond Alkali Superfund site on ... NJ. EPA has...

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Transcript of Anatomy of America’s Worst Superfund Site · mond Alkali Superfund site on ... NJ. EPA has...