Pollution Prevention

All of the watersheds in Gloucester County have some parts – either stream segments or lakes – that are classified by the state of New Jersey as impaired. That is, they do not measure up to the standards required for maintenance of healthy aquatic communities of wildlife, especially of fish and the smaller creatures at the base of the food chain. All Gloucester County waters are designated to be of sufficient quality for certain recreational use, such as boating, and most are supposed to be swimmable. Some do not meet the state standards set for these uses.

Monitoring Water Quality
Measurement of impairments is based on monitoring done by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection at specific sites along the streams, which are primarily along the main channels. Waterways may have levels of nitrates, phosphorus, metals, other chemical compounds, or bacterial contamination that are above state water quality criteria (allowable limits for particular substances.)

The status of lakes in Gloucester County is variable. Lake water quality is assessed by the Gloucester County Health Department if a lake is used for public swimming. Standards must be achieved or the swimming facility is closed. Several lakes in the County are in swimmable condition, but some have been impaired by polluted stormwater or bacterial contamination from geese.

Cause of Impairments
The main reason for water quality impairment in the County is stormwater runoff. In addition, some waterways have sediments that were polluted by industry or accident in the past. This latter type of pollution can only be removed by dredging and then removing the sediments, which is often prohibitively expensive.

Water quality degradation from stormwater runoff is primarily the result of haphazard land development. Growth in more developed parts of the County took place at a time when waterways were considered handy conduits for sewage disposal and stormwater management. Today, although raw sewage and industrial chemicals are no longer dumped into streams, lakes, and wetlands, development still has an impact on local waterways. Development covers the natural landscape with roads and buildings. Rainwater that once would have naturally filtered down into the earth becomes stormwater runoff, filling watershed streams with high quantities of pollutants from the land surface and raising their volume following rainstorms.

Older communities cannot easily alter the piping systems and impervious cover associated with earlier development. In municipalities with remaining open land areas, there is continuing extreme pressure from those who wish to develop the land for residential and commercial uses. Additional inadequately planned development will increase water quality problems in those areas.

Land development is governed by different regulations in each municipality. The success of each town in protecting its environment varies widely. Some towns are very proactive in protecting streams, wetlands, steep slopes and other sensitive environmental features, while other towns are slow to recognize the value of protecting their natural resources.

Point Source Pollution

Non-Point Source Pollution