Rescuing Flat Creek

New Jersey has many spectacular rivers and coastlines, from the Delaware River to the southern Jersey shore. Unfortunately, Flat Creek has become too polluted for fishing or swimming and can’t count itself as NJ’s beautiful waterways. Flat Creek is riddled with a myriad of problems. Initially, the creek is filled with debris as a result of people and construction works dumping into it. You can find up to 3-4 tires in it at all times. Moreover, the creek is in extreme need to be dredged because it is ridiculously dirty. Moreover, its near stagnant water is creating a mosquito problem for the people in the area, health wise. The creek runs through a trailer park. The trailer park association president informed me that many of his members are on preventative antibiotics most of the year. He was told from his doctor that he needed to be on these antibiotics due to environmental conditions. Additionally, the creek is channeled through the trailer park in this very small concrete channel. When it rains, the creek frequently floods damaging the properties. Also, the creek is near dead because it is stagnant. This alone is enough for some action. Having stagnant creek water wash up in your backyard is like have Katrina water wash up on your porch. According to the president of the trailer park association, the township has turned a blind eye to it because its residents are firstly mostly below the poverty line and also rent the property from a landlord who doesn't complain about the conditions because he doesn't live there. What I am looking to do with the grant money is to buy equipment to do visual and bio assessments of the creek of ¼ increments. With this data, I plan to publish a small newsletter to give to all the citizens of the trailer park so they know what is going on in their backyard. Hopefully, this will also attract the attention of authorities so they can do something about the conditions there.