Pompton River survey completed

| 28 Sep 2011 | 02:51

    PATERSON n A survey has been completed of the Pompton River through a collaborative effort by the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Passaic River Coalition. The study includes sections on the geology of Wayne Township, its floodplains, surface water quality and public water supply resources. The condition of the river and its banks are detailed as well as methods for restoring the river for recreational purposes. The report is part of a project titled "Rediscovering the Rivers of Passaic County Part Two n Surveying the Pompton River." Part one is a survey of the Passaic River completed in 2003. The survey covers the 7.6 mile stretch of the Pompton River beginning on the Ramapo River a half mile before it merges with the Pequannock River to become the Pompton River and ends before the confluences of the Pompton and Passaic Rivers. The report includes a database of Pompton River bank characteristics of predominant features of the riverbank such as natural vegetation, banks artificially modified by walls and states of bank erosion. Recommendations for stabilizing the riverbanks to prevent flooding include increasing the amount of storm water that infiltrates into the ground and increase the growth of wooded vegetation. The survey data may be useful in identifying locations along the Pompton River where preservation and restoration will benefit both the river and the people living in Wayne. The condition of the riverbanks in Wayne was observed by boat on the river and over 500 photographs of the river shorelines were recorded. Maps, photographs and tables of characteristics observed for each river bank length are included in the document. "We ‘re very pleased that the Pompton River has been surveyed," said Freeholder Director Elease Evans. "We now have information and pictures from this river study to improve its conditions for the people of Passaic County."