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The lake, a small impoundment of Peekskill Hollow Creek, serves as a vital recreational resource for the community. Princeton Hydro’s initial study was structured around three core tasks: (1) analysis of long-term water quality data, (2) development of an updated pollutant budget, and (3) formulation of short- and long-term management strategies. The analysis revealed a steady increase in conductivity and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations over the past two decades, indicating rising nutrient loads and a shift toward eutrophic conditions. Elevated TP levels were directly linked to increased algal biomass, particularly harmful cyanobacteria producing microcystin-LR, which exceeded safe swimming thresholds in 2014. The updated pollutant budget identified septic system leachate (55%) and stormwater runoff (22%) as the primary sources of phosphorus entering the lake. Internal loading from sediments and atmospheric deposition also contributed to the nutrient burden. To address these issues, Princeton Hydro proposed a suite of in-lake management interventions focused on the lake’s three public beaches. Recommendations included installing electric water pumps to improve circulation at Carrara’s Beach and ozone/aeration systems at Singer’s and North Beaches to reduce organic buildup and mitigate algal blooms. These nature-based, non-chemical solutions were designed to provide immediate relief while longer-term watershed improvements, such as septic upgrades and stormwater controls, are pursued. The plan emphasized the need for community engagement, regulatory coordination, and sustainable implementation to restore and protect Lake Peekskill’s ecological health and recreational value. Building on this foundational work, Princeton Hydro was re-engaged in 2022 by the Lake Peekskill Civic Association (LPCA) and the Town of Putnam Valley to provide additional lake management services. The team developed a comprehensive Lake Management Plan aimed at identifying and prioritizing cost-effective green infrastructure and stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) for implementation by the Town. The goal was to reduce nutrient loading, improve water quality, mitigate nuisance aquatic vegetation, prevent harmful algal blooms (HABs), and enhance overall stormwater management within the watershed. This phase of work included a detailed analysis of historical water quality data, a submerged aquatic macrophyte survey, and a field-based water quality assessment. Princeton Hydro also conducted a pollutant removal analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of specific watershed-based management techniques. The resulting plan provided a clear roadmap for reducing annual pollutant loads and minimizing the occurrence and severity of HABs through targeted, science-based interventions. The recommendations were designed to be actionable, scalable, and aligned with the Town’s capacity and resources, reinforcing the long-term commitment to restoring and maintaining the health of Lake Peekskill. [post_title] => Lake Peekskill Watershed Management Planning [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => lake-peekskill-watershed-management-planning [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2026-03-06 13:38:57 [post_modified_gmt] => 2026-03-06 13:38:57 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=19291 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [1] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 19061 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2026-01-12 21:50:23 [post_date_gmt] => 2026-01-12 21:50:23 [post_content] => From 2001 through 2002 Princeton Hydro collected the necessary field data such as in-situ, bathymetric, and discrete (both water and sediment), and also delineated and modeled the hydrologic and nutrient loads of the watershed for four (4) New Jersey state park lakes: Round Valley swimming area, Lake Absegami, Host Lake, and Hook Creek Lake. This data was then compiled and computed to prepare a Management Plan for each of the individual lakes. [gallery link="none" size="medium" ids="19062,19063,19064"] The plans provided specific objectives and recommendations for the short and long-term management of each Lake and its watershed. Both in-lake and watershed management techniques were provided in the plan. In-lake techniques tended to focus on symptomatic problems such as algal blooms and the accumulation of sediments, while watershed techniques tended to focus on reducing pollutant loads through the use of structural and non-structural Best Management Practices (BMPs) and Green Infrastructure (GI) techniques. The management techniques were priority ranked, with these rankings being dependent upon applicability, regulatory constraints, technical feasibility, degree of effectiveness, initial implementation costs, and operations and maintenance costs. In-lake restoration techniques were designed to improve the water quality and/or aesthetics of the waterbody by alleviating the specific impacts of pollution. Although these measures typically provide only short-term relief without controlling the source of the pollutants, they can substantially improve the aesthetics of a lake while the long-term, watershed-based management practices are being implemented. In contrast to in-lake restoration techniques, watershed-based techniques focused on the causes of eutrophication rather than the effects. Watershed techniques were not as visible as in-lake techniques and tended to take more time to produce their desired results. However, they were absolutely vital in reducing the pollutant load, as well as producing and sustaining long-term improvements in surface water quality for each of the lakes. [post_title] => New Jersey State Park - Diagnostic Feasibility Lake Studies [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => new-jersey-state-park-diagnostic-feasibility-lake-studies [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2026-01-12 21:52:34 [post_modified_gmt] => 2026-01-12 21:52:34 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=19061 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [2] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 12988 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2023-07-12 14:36:05 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-07-12 14:36:05 [post_content] => One of the most significant recreational draws to Lake Hopatcong is its trout fishery, recognized regionally by anglers and established as an important component of the local economy. Data collected over the past 30 years at the lake was recently analyzed and showed increasing surface water temperatures. This trend may suggest that the trout carryover habitat is being negatively impacted. Additionally, trout stocking practices at the lake have been modified over the last decade and have shifted towards stocking smaller trout that are potentially more vulnerable to changes in water quality and habitat quality. Together, these factors are viewed as potentially detrimental to the trout fishery. Trout require relatively high dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations and cool water temperatures. In regard to those habitat requirements, the critical period is the high summer months near peak water temperatures. At that time of year, trout holdover habitat, or the portion of the lake that meets the temperature and DO requirements for trout, compresses as a result of increased surface water temperatures and oxygen depression in the deeper water column. Research indicates larger and older trout have a higher tolerance of marginal habitat conditions like high water temperatures and low DO concentrations than smaller fish. In response to the concerns regarding the current stocking of trout in Lake Hopatcong, the Lake Hopatcong Commission (LHC) Trout Committee was formed in 2021. The LHC, in cooperation with the Lake Hopatcong Foundation and the Knee-Deep Club, initiated a three-year trout tagging study. The study is focused on the introduction of larger trout to assess the long-term population dynamics of those stocked fish and the general health of the fishery. In particular, the Trout Committee is interested in the intersection between the stocking of larger brown trout (Salmo trutta) and trout carryover habitat quality. One thousand tagged brown trout, approximately 12-14 inches in length, were released in Lake Hopatcong on March 26, 2022 to initiate the first year of the study. In addition to stocking fish and managing the tag and creel survey, the Trout Committee and other stakeholders also seek to better define carryover habitat in the lake. This includes habitat in the limnetic area (open waters) of the lake, as well as potential trout refuge habitat near seeps, springs, tributaries, or other attractant features around the shoreline. Thus, temperature and DO were measured at a high frequency in the limnetic zone, around the entire shoreline, and in 10 tributaries over the course of the summer of 2022. All technical aspects of the project, including the data collection, analysis, and subsequent report were conducted by Princeton Hydro and funded by a New Jersey Highlands Council grant. Overall, little can be stated after the first year of the study regarding carryover trout populations. More data on which to analyze those factors will be generated in the spring of 2023 and will continue to be developed over the course of this multi-year study. The in-situ data indicates that although the summer was historically hot and dry in 2022, and carryover trout habitat was extremely limited at times from mid-July through mid-August, available habitat was dynamic on a weekly and likely diel basis during the peak summer months. The study also documented multiple near-shore locations, mostly around the northern end of Lake Hopatcong, that provided carryover trout habitat on the same day where limnetic habitat was limited during the extremely warm August. Additionally, all 10 stream sites were cooler than the Mid-Lake station, and eight sites were over 4.0 °C cooler than the Mid-Lake station on the same date in mid-August. As a final component of the study, nine locations throughout the watershed were identified as candidates to be enhanced to protect the near-shore and stream habitat identified as carryover trout habitat during the 2022 sampling. [post_title] => Lake Hopatcong Trout Habitat and Tagging Study [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => lake-hopatcong-trout-habitat-and-tagging-study [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2023-08-16 22:39:36 [post_modified_gmt] => 2023-08-16 22:39:36 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=12988 [menu_order] => 10 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [3] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 12813 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2023-06-05 21:45:19 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-06-05 21:45:19 [post_content] => Princeton Hydro was contracted by Ocean County Department of Planning to develop a Conservation Management Plan for the Former New Jersey Pulverizing Tract. In 2016, the County purchased the 782-acre sand and gravel quarry using funds from the Natural Lands Trust. The County’s restoration objectives incorporate ecological improvements, extension of public trails access to and through the site, and establishment of a long-term landscape design lending itself to sustainable, cost-effective stewardship as a key Natural Lands Trust preserve. To understand the site, Princeton Hydro assessed the exisiting conditions and found that most of the site was degraded landscape from nine decades of continuous sand and gravel extraction. We conducted a water quality assessment, hydrologic monitoring, fishery survey, soil sampling, and wetland delineation. With the exception of a forest perimeter buffer, nearly all land within the site was mined and lowered substantially in base elevation. The result is a bowl-like landscape of exposed and compacted soils, forest, and wetland areas, a sterile 42-acre lake, mining roads, ATV tracks, steep slopes, ruts, and soil piles. Princeton Hydro prepared the Conservation Management Plan, which responds to Ocean County’s directive by presenting a composite view for land restoration as a mosaic of open water, wetland, emergent meadow, grassland, and forest linked by miles of new recreational trails. The site’s proposed public access system combines 8.1 miles of planned pedestrian paths and multi-use bicycle trails. All trails will connect with Ocean County’s Barnegat Branch Trail, an existing 15.6-mile regional facility that runs for 1.4 miles through the site’s eastern reach. The plan also contains a unique 3.0-mile water trail that connects existing dead-end mining channels through a series of excavated shallow cuts. The water trail will unlock a range of paddling routes that offer kayakers and canoeists unequaled access to restored and protected ponds, wetlands, fishing and picnicking coves, and terrestrial zones including birding meadows and oak-pine forests. Habitat creation areas include fishery development, connecting waterways, emergent and seasonal wetlands, bogs, grassland, and an improved stream connection between the main lake and the Barnegat Bay. The plan also proposes to preserve mixed pine-oak forest, mature pine forest, and specified wetlands and open waters. [gallery link="none" ids="14353,14352,12004,12003,12002,14350"] [post_title] => Former NJ Pulverizing Tract Conservation Plan [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => former-nj-pulverizing-tract-conservation-plan [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2025-01-02 14:30:10 [post_modified_gmt] => 2025-01-02 14:30:10 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=12813 [menu_order] => 12 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [4] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 10410 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2022-03-08 14:07:23 [post_date_gmt] => 2022-03-08 14:07:23 [post_content] => Princeton Hydro was contracted by the New York State Thruway as a sub-consultant to AKRF to perform detailed ecological and water quality site characterization studies associated with the Gay’s Point Secondary Channel Restoration Project. The data collected by Princeton Hydro would ultimately be used by the NYSDEC to establish a baseline of site environmental conditions for the Gay’s Point Channel as well as in the development of channel reconnection and restoration concepts. If the resulting data proved favorable, the reconnection of the channel to the Hudson River would be implemented in part to satisfy the NYSDEC’s environmental mitigation requirements for the reconstruction of the Tappan Zee Bridge. Gay’s Point is a tidal embayment of the Hudson River associated with the Hudson River Islands State Park, Columbia County. The work conducted by Princeton Hydro involved an intense sampling effort consisting of six (6) week-long sampling efforts conducted per year, with two sampling events conducted in the Spring, Summer, and Fall. Each sampling event involved the collection of fish, macroinvertebrate, aquatic vegetation, hydrologic, water quality, avifauna, and bathymetric data at both the Gay’s Point site and at Hallenbeck Creek, a reference analog used to project the potential post-restoration conditions of Gay’s Point should the channel be reconnected with the river. Hallenbeck Creek is located approximately nine miles south of Gay’s Point adjacent to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and is tidally connected to the Hudson River. A unique element of the project involved the installation and maintenance of radio-telemetry, remote sensing water elevation, and in-situ water quality monitoring equipment at both the Gay’s Point and Hallenbeck Creek sites. These data were utilized in combination with the discrete data collected during each field event to analyze the effects of storm events, seasonal changes in flow and other related temporal factors of the ecological and environmental attributes of both sites. The data collected and analyzed by Princeton Hydro were subsequently subject to detailed statistical analyses. The data confirmed the ecological benefits of reconnecting the Gay’s Point Channel to the Hudson River. [post_title] => Gay's Point - Secondary Channel Restoration Project [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => gays-point-secondary-channel-restoration-project [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-07-11 14:32:21 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-07-11 14:32:21 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=10410 [menu_order] => 65 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [5] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 7329 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2021-04-23 09:36:52 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-04-23 09:36:52 [post_content] => The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) received a grant for this project from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Grantees were required to complete projects that increase resilience to natural infrastructure, in turn increasing the resiliency of coastal communities in the face of future storms like Hurricane Sandy. This project site required the design to maintain navigation channels and assist in the adaption of tidal marshes to sea level rise and subsidence. The project was completed to investigate and assess the use of dredged material disposal placement, and the effectiveness of this method in maintaining marshes at an elevation that supports native marsh vegetation to reinforce the subsoils, and protect the local community. This project entailed the following at two different sites along the Delaware Bay. The work completed at the Fortescue site involved the dredging of Fortescue Creek and the restoration and enhancement of interior high and low marsh, coastal dune, and beach habitats. Biological benchmarks representative of each targeted habitat type were identified and evaluated to determine the upper and lower elevational tolerances for target communities and plant species. To achieve the habitat enhancement, approximately 33,300 cubic yards of dredged material was borrowed from the navigation channel by the New Jersey Department of Transportation. The dredged material was beneficially used to restore a degraded salt marsh, restore an eroded dune, and replenish Fortescue Beach. The eroded dune was replaced with a dune designed to meet target flood elevations and protect the marsh behind it against future damage. The dune was constructed using sand dredged from the channel and material was contained using Filtrexx material to prevent sedimentation entering the waterways. This site consists of a tidal marsh complex located within a back-bay estuary proximal to Stone Harbor and Avalon, New Jersey. The placement of dredged material onto eight distinct areas (totaling 51.2 acres) aims to enhance the marsh to achieve the primary goal of restoring the function of this tidal marsh complex. The two activities included the application of dredged material to the impaired marsh plain. First, a layer of dredged material for sediment enrichment was placed over targeted areas of existing salt marsh to increase marsh elevations; the second activity involved concentrated placement of material to fill expanding pools by elevating the substrate to the same elevation as the adjacent marsh. Thus, the goal of these restoration activities is to arrest the subsidence-based marsh loss at the project site by filling isolated pockets of open water and increasing marsh platform elevation. In addition, the beneficial reuse of dredged material facilitates routine and post-storm dredging and improves the navigability of the Waters of the United States. [post_title] => Habitat Restoration Through Application of Dredged Material for Sediment Enrichment [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => habitat-restoration-through-the-thin-layer-application-of-dredged-material [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-07-11 15:05:37 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-07-11 15:05:37 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://princetonhydro.com/?post_type=project&p=7329 [menu_order] => 86 [post_type] => project [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [post_count] => 6 [current_post] => -1 [before_loop] => 1 [in_the_loop] => [post] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 19291 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2026-03-06 13:38:57 [post_date_gmt] => 2026-03-06 13:38:57 [post_content] => In response to recurring water quality issues, including a significant cyanobacterial bloom in 2014 that led to prolonged beach closures, the Town of Putnam Valley engaged Princeton Hydro to revise and update the Lake Peekskill Watershed Management Plan. The lake, a small impoundment of Peekskill Hollow Creek, serves as a vital recreational resource for the community. Princeton Hydro’s initial study was structured around three core tasks: (1) analysis of long-term water quality data, (2) development of an updated pollutant budget, and (3) formulation of short- and long-term management strategies. The analysis revealed a steady increase in conductivity and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations over the past two decades, indicating rising nutrient loads and a shift toward eutrophic conditions. Elevated TP levels were directly linked to increased algal biomass, particularly harmful cyanobacteria producing microcystin-LR, which exceeded safe swimming thresholds in 2014. The updated pollutant budget identified septic system leachate (55%) and stormwater runoff (22%) as the primary sources of phosphorus entering the lake. Internal loading from sediments and atmospheric deposition also contributed to the nutrient burden. To address these issues, Princeton Hydro proposed a suite of in-lake management interventions focused on the lake’s three public beaches. Recommendations included installing electric water pumps to improve circulation at Carrara’s Beach and ozone/aeration systems at Singer’s and North Beaches to reduce organic buildup and mitigate algal blooms. These nature-based, non-chemical solutions were designed to provide immediate relief while longer-term watershed improvements, such as septic upgrades and stormwater controls, are pursued. The plan emphasized the need for community engagement, regulatory coordination, and sustainable implementation to restore and protect Lake Peekskill’s ecological health and recreational value. Building on this foundational work, Princeton Hydro was re-engaged in 2022 by the Lake Peekskill Civic Association (LPCA) and the Town of Putnam Valley to provide additional lake management services. The team developed a comprehensive Lake Management Plan aimed at identifying and prioritizing cost-effective green infrastructure and stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) for implementation by the Town. The goal was to reduce nutrient loading, improve water quality, mitigate nuisance aquatic vegetation, prevent harmful algal blooms (HABs), and enhance overall stormwater management within the watershed. This phase of work included a detailed analysis of historical water quality data, a submerged aquatic macrophyte survey, and a field-based water quality assessment. Princeton Hydro also conducted a pollutant removal analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of specific watershed-based management techniques. The resulting plan provided a clear roadmap for reducing annual pollutant loads and minimizing the occurrence and severity of HABs through targeted, science-based interventions. The recommendations were designed to be actionable, scalable, and aligned with the Town’s capacity and resources, reinforcing the long-term commitment to restoring and maintaining the health of Lake Peekskill. 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In response to recurring water quality issues, including a significant cyanobacterial bloom in 2014 that led to prolonged beach closures, the Town of Putnam Valley engaged Princeton Hydro to revise and update the Lake Peekskill Watershed Management Plan. The lake, a small impoundment of Peekskill Hollow Creek, serves as a vital recreational resource for the community. Princeton Hydro’s initial study was structured around three core tasks: (1) analysis of long-term water quality data, (2) development of an updated pollutant budget, and (3) formulation of short- and long-term management strategies.
The analysis revealed a steady increase in conductivity and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations over the past two decades, indicating rising nutrient loads and a shift toward eutrophic conditions. Elevated TP levels were directly linked to increased algal biomass, particularly harmful cyanobacteria producing microcystin-LR, which exceeded safe swimming thresholds in 2014. The updated pollutant budget identified septic system leachate (55%) and stormwater runoff (22%) as the primary sources of phosphorus entering the lake. Internal loading from sediments and atmospheric deposition also contributed to the nutrient burden.
To address these issues, Princeton Hydro proposed a suite of in-lake management interventions focused on the lake’s three public beaches. Recommendations included installing electric water pumps to improve circulation at Carrara’s Beach and ozone/aeration systems at Singer’s and North Beaches to reduce organic buildup and mitigate algal blooms. These nature-based, non-chemical solutions were designed to provide immediate relief while longer-term watershed improvements, such as septic upgrades and stormwater controls, are pursued. The plan emphasized the need for community engagement, regulatory coordination, and sustainable implementation to restore and protect Lake Peekskill’s ecological health and recreational value.
Building on this foundational work, Princeton Hydro was re-engaged in 2022 by the Lake Peekskill Civic Association (LPCA) and the Town of Putnam Valley to provide additional lake management services. The team developed a comprehensive Lake Management Plan aimed at identifying and prioritizing cost-effective green infrastructure and stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) for implementation by the Town. The goal was to reduce nutrient loading, improve water quality, mitigate nuisance aquatic vegetation, prevent harmful algal blooms (HABs), and enhance overall stormwater management within the watershed.
This phase of work included a detailed analysis of historical water quality data, a submerged aquatic macrophyte survey, and a field-based water quality assessment. Princeton Hydro also conducted a pollutant removal analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of specific watershed-based management techniques. The resulting plan provided a clear roadmap for reducing annual pollutant loads and minimizing the occurrence and severity of HABs through targeted, science-based interventions. The recommendations were designed to be actionable, scalable, and aligned with the Town’s capacity and resources, reinforcing the long-term commitment to restoring and maintaining the health of Lake Peekskill.
From 2001 through 2002 Princeton Hydro collected the necessary field data such as in-situ, bathymetric, and discrete (both water and sediment), and also delineated and modeled the hydrologic and nutrient loads of the watershed for four (4) New Jersey state park lakes: Round Valley swimming area, Lake Absegami, Host Lake, and Hook Creek Lake. This data was then compiled and computed to prepare a Management Plan for each of the individual lakes.
The plans provided specific objectives and recommendations for the short and long-term management of each Lake and its watershed. Both in-lake and watershed management techniques were provided in the plan. In-lake techniques tended to focus on symptomatic problems such as algal blooms and the accumulation of sediments, while watershed techniques tended to focus on reducing pollutant loads through the use of structural and non-structural Best Management Practices (BMPs) and Green Infrastructure (GI) techniques. The management techniques were priority ranked, with these rankings being dependent upon applicability, regulatory constraints, technical feasibility, degree of effectiveness, initial implementation costs, and operations and maintenance costs.
In-lake restoration techniques were designed to improve the water quality and/or aesthetics of the waterbody by alleviating the specific impacts of pollution. Although these measures typically provide only short-term relief without controlling the source of the pollutants, they can substantially improve the aesthetics of a lake while the long-term, watershed-based management practices are being implemented.
In contrast to in-lake restoration techniques, watershed-based techniques focused on the causes of eutrophication rather than the effects. Watershed techniques were not as visible as in-lake techniques and tended to take more time to produce their desired results. However, they were absolutely vital in reducing the pollutant load, as well as producing and sustaining long-term improvements in surface water quality for each of the lakes.
One of the most significant recreational draws to Lake Hopatcong is its trout fishery, recognized regionally by anglers and established as an important component of the local economy. Data collected over the past 30 years at the lake was recently analyzed and showed increasing surface water temperatures. This trend may suggest that the trout carryover habitat is being negatively impacted. Additionally, trout stocking practices at the lake have been modified over the last decade and have shifted towards stocking smaller trout that are potentially more vulnerable to changes in water quality and habitat quality. Together, these factors are viewed as potentially detrimental to the trout fishery.
Trout require relatively high dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations and cool water temperatures. In regard to those habitat requirements, the critical period is the high summer months near peak water temperatures. At that time of year, trout holdover habitat, or the portion of the lake that meets the temperature and DO requirements for trout, compresses as a result of increased surface water temperatures and oxygen depression in the deeper water column. Research indicates larger and older trout have a higher tolerance of marginal habitat conditions like high water temperatures and low DO concentrations than smaller fish.
In response to the concerns regarding the current stocking of trout in Lake Hopatcong, the Lake Hopatcong Commission (LHC) Trout Committee was formed in 2021. The LHC, in cooperation with the Lake Hopatcong Foundation and the Knee-Deep Club, initiated a three-year trout tagging study. The study is focused on the introduction of larger trout to assess the long-term population dynamics of those stocked fish and the general health of the fishery. In particular, the Trout Committee is interested in the intersection between the stocking of larger brown trout (Salmo trutta) and trout carryover habitat quality.
One thousand tagged brown trout, approximately 12-14 inches in length, were released in Lake Hopatcong on March 26, 2022 to initiate the first year of the study. In addition to stocking fish and managing the tag and creel survey, the Trout Committee and other stakeholders also seek to better define carryover habitat in the lake. This includes habitat in the limnetic area (open waters) of the lake, as well as potential trout refuge habitat near seeps, springs, tributaries, or other attractant features around the shoreline. Thus, temperature and DO were measured at a high frequency in the limnetic zone, around the entire shoreline, and in 10 tributaries over the course of the summer of 2022. All technical aspects of the project, including the data collection, analysis, and subsequent report were conducted by Princeton Hydro and funded by a New Jersey Highlands Council grant.
Overall, little can be stated after the first year of the study regarding carryover trout populations. More data on which to analyze those factors will be generated in the spring of 2023 and will continue to be developed over the course of this multi-year study. The in-situ data indicates that although the summer was historically hot and dry in 2022, and carryover trout habitat was extremely limited at times from mid-July through mid-August, available habitat was dynamic on a weekly and likely diel basis during the peak summer months.
The study also documented multiple near-shore locations, mostly around the northern end of Lake Hopatcong, that provided carryover trout habitat on the same day where limnetic habitat was limited during the extremely warm August. Additionally, all 10 stream sites were cooler than the Mid-Lake station, and eight sites were over 4.0 °C cooler than the Mid-Lake station on the same date in mid-August. As a final component of the study, nine locations throughout the watershed were identified as candidates to be enhanced to protect the near-shore and stream habitat identified as carryover trout habitat during the 2022 sampling.
Princeton Hydro was contracted by Ocean County Department of Planning to develop a Conservation Management Plan for the Former New Jersey Pulverizing Tract. In 2016, the County purchased the 782-acre sand and gravel quarry using funds from the Natural Lands Trust. The County’s restoration objectives incorporate ecological improvements, extension of public trails access to and through the site, and establishment of a long-term landscape design lending itself to sustainable, cost-effective stewardship as a key Natural Lands Trust preserve.
To understand the site, Princeton Hydro assessed the exisiting conditions and found that most of the site was degraded landscape from nine decades of continuous sand and gravel extraction. We conducted a water quality assessment, hydrologic monitoring, fishery survey, soil sampling, and wetland delineation. With the exception of a forest perimeter buffer, nearly all land within the site was mined and lowered substantially in base elevation. The result is a bowl-like landscape of exposed and compacted soils, forest, and wetland areas, a sterile 42-acre lake, mining roads, ATV tracks, steep slopes, ruts, and soil piles.
Princeton Hydro prepared the Conservation Management Plan, which responds to Ocean County’s directive by presenting a composite view for land restoration as a mosaic of open water, wetland, emergent meadow, grassland, and forest linked by miles of new recreational trails. The site’s proposed public access system combines 8.1 miles of planned pedestrian paths and multi-use bicycle trails. All trails will connect with Ocean County’s Barnegat Branch Trail, an existing 15.6-mile regional facility that runs for 1.4 miles through the site’s eastern reach. The plan also contains a unique 3.0-mile water trail that connects existing dead-end mining channels through a series of excavated shallow cuts.
The water trail will unlock a range of paddling routes that offer kayakers and canoeists unequaled access to restored and protected ponds, wetlands, fishing and picnicking coves, and terrestrial zones including birding meadows and oak-pine forests. Habitat creation areas include fishery development, connecting waterways, emergent and seasonal wetlands, bogs, grassland, and an improved stream connection between the main lake and the Barnegat Bay. The plan also proposes to preserve mixed pine-oak forest, mature pine forest, and specified wetlands and open waters.
Princeton Hydro was contracted by the New York State Thruway as a sub-consultant to AKRF to perform detailed ecological and water quality site characterization studies associated with the Gay’s Point Secondary Channel Restoration Project. The data collected by Princeton Hydro would ultimately be used by the NYSDEC to establish a baseline of site environmental conditions for the Gay’s Point Channel as well as in the development of channel reconnection and restoration concepts. If the resulting data proved favorable, the reconnection of the channel to the Hudson River would be implemented in part to satisfy the NYSDEC’s environmental mitigation requirements for the reconstruction of the Tappan Zee Bridge. Gay’s Point is a tidal embayment of the Hudson River associated with the Hudson River Islands State Park, Columbia County.
The work conducted by Princeton Hydro involved an intense sampling effort consisting of six (6) week-long sampling efforts conducted per year, with two sampling events conducted in the Spring, Summer, and Fall. Each sampling event involved the collection of fish, macroinvertebrate, aquatic vegetation, hydrologic, water quality, avifauna, and bathymetric data at both the Gay’s Point site and at Hallenbeck Creek, a reference analog used to project the potential post-restoration conditions of Gay’s Point should the channel be reconnected with the river. Hallenbeck Creek is located approximately nine miles south of Gay’s Point adjacent to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and is tidally connected to the Hudson River.
A unique element of the project involved the installation and maintenance of radio-telemetry, remote sensing water elevation, and in-situ water quality monitoring equipment at both the Gay’s Point and Hallenbeck Creek sites. These data were utilized in combination with the discrete data collected during each field event to analyze the effects of storm events, seasonal changes in flow and other related temporal factors of the ecological and environmental attributes of both sites. The data collected and analyzed by Princeton Hydro were subsequently subject to detailed statistical analyses. The data confirmed the ecological benefits of reconnecting the Gay’s Point Channel to the Hudson River.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) received a grant for this project from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Grantees were required to complete projects that increase resilience to natural infrastructure, in turn increasing the resiliency of coastal communities in the face of future storms like Hurricane Sandy. This project site required the design to maintain navigation channels and assist in the adaption of tidal marshes to sea level rise and subsidence. The project was completed to investigate and assess the use of dredged material disposal placement, and the effectiveness of this method in maintaining marshes at an elevation that supports native marsh vegetation to reinforce the subsoils, and protect the local community. This project entailed the following at two different sites along the Delaware Bay.
The work completed at the Fortescue site involved the dredging of Fortescue Creek and the restoration and enhancement of interior high and low marsh, coastal dune, and beach habitats. Biological benchmarks representative of each targeted habitat type were identified and evaluated to determine the upper and lower elevational tolerances for target communities and plant species. To achieve the habitat enhancement, approximately 33,300 cubic yards of dredged material was borrowed from the navigation channel by the New Jersey Department of Transportation. The dredged material was beneficially used to restore a degraded salt marsh, restore an eroded dune, and replenish Fortescue Beach. The eroded dune was replaced with a dune designed to meet target flood elevations and protect the marsh behind it against future damage. The dune was constructed using sand dredged from the channel and material was contained using Filtrexx material to prevent sedimentation entering the waterways.
This site consists of a tidal marsh complex located within a back-bay estuary proximal to Stone Harbor and Avalon, New Jersey. The placement of dredged material onto eight distinct areas (totaling 51.2 acres) aims to enhance the marsh to achieve the primary goal of restoring the function of this tidal marsh complex. The two activities included the application of dredged material to the impaired marsh plain. First, a layer of dredged material for sediment enrichment was placed over targeted areas of existing salt marsh to increase marsh elevations; the second activity involved concentrated placement of material to fill expanding pools by elevating the substrate to the same elevation as the adjacent marsh. Thus, the goal of these restoration activities is to arrest the subsidence-based marsh loss at the project site by filling isolated pockets of open water and increasing marsh platform elevation. In addition, the beneficial reuse of dredged material facilitates routine and post-storm dredging and improves the navigability of the Waters of the United States.
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