Dodge Blog: Protecting the Dismal Swamp in Central NJ
David Wheeler and snapping turtle.
Photo Credit: Edison Wetlands Association
by David Wheeler for the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Blog
At first glance, the wooded slopes of the Bound Brook appeared to be something from a Bram Stoker nightmare in the Carpathian Mountains. Sharp-pointed wooden stakes jut from the ground every few feet, like the handiwork of Vlad the Impaler.
Yet the cause of these stakes is something far more benign: the hard-working American beaver. Beavers returned to the Bound Brook’s headwaters here in the Dismal Swamp Conservation Area around a decade ago, after nearly a century away. Industry’s historic legacy on New Jersey water quality, combined with the endless push of development, rendered the watershed largely unsuitable for the beaver and many other water-dependent wildlife.
At first glance, the wooded slopes of the Bound Brook appeared to be something from a Bram Stoker nightmare in the Carpathian Mountains. Sharp-pointed wooden stakes jut from the ground every few feet, like the handiwork of Vlad the Impaler.
Yet the cause of these stakes is something far more benign: the hard-working American beaver. Beavers returned to the Bound Brook’s headwaters here in the Dismal Swamp Conservation Area around a decade ago, after nearly a century away. Industry’s historic legacy on New Jersey water quality, combined with the endless push of development, rendered the watershed largely unsuitable for the beaver and many other water-dependent wildlife.
Posted by WILDNEWJERSEY at 6/22/2011 10:00 AM 
Categories: Dismal Swamp
Tags: dismal swamp David Wheeler Bound Brook Beavers wildlife snapping turtle red fox endangered species
Categories: Dismal Swamp
Tags: dismal swamp David Wheeler Bound Brook Beavers wildlife snapping turtle red fox endangered species
Please look into South Plainfield's plans to construct a road through a small portion of the Dismal Swamp in the very near future. This road will spew tons of pollutants into a very fragile area, not to mention the noise and litter. Why is this road needed when they already rerouted trucks off Hamilton Boulevard and onto New Market Avenue? They have already submitted plans and licensing permits to the DEP. Please contact the DEP to protest this road!
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Marnie,
We completely agree! Visit http://njdismalswamp.org/?page_id=100 for more information on how to fight this destructive proposal.
Best,
Wild New Jersey
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