RESILIENT MUSCONETCONG 2050

 Resilient Musconetcong 2050: In Brief 

The Musconetcong Watershed is the land whose water drains into the Musconetcong River in northwestern New Jersey. The river itself is 42 miles long, and its watershed covers about 157.6 square miles of the Upper Delaware River watershed and about one sixth of the entire Highlands Region.

A Land of Possibilities

As you travel throughout the Musconetcong Watershed, you can’t help but marvel at the beauty and intimacy of the area. Standing in the Musconetcong River, you feel like you can touch the surrounding mountains. From the top of Point Mountain, you see the majesty of rolling hills and fertile valleys that have served generations of people and spawned many successful businesses. In towns like Hackettstown, Netcong, Washington, Hampton and Bloomsbury, you walk the streets and feel history envelop you like a warm blanket.

However, the future is not guaranteed, and each of us has an opportunity and a responsibility to do what we can to protect, conserve and grow our watershed.

The Musconetcong Watershed Association has co-created this Watershed Vision Plan with people who call this place home, so that future generations can experience the natural and cultural resources that we often take for granted. We encourage you to explore this Vision Plan and share your thoughts and ideas to ensure that the vision becomes reality.

The Musconetcong River is a 42-mile-long river located in northwestern New Jersey.  The river runs from Lake Hopatcong to the confluence of the Delaware River at Riegelsville, Pohatcong Township - though some have placed its origin at Weldon Brook, which rises west of Bowling Green Mountain. Its drainage area, or “watershed,” is 157.6 square miles and covers four counties - Hunterdon, Morris, Warren, and Sussex - and 26 municipalities, or about one-sixth of the entire Highlands region. The Musconetcong is the second largest Upper Delaware river tributary after the Paulins Kill.

The Musconetcong River forms the boundary between Morris and Sussex in the Upper Watershed, and Warren and Hunterdon counties in the southern portion. The watershed is characterized by two distinct geographies - the flat, level surface of the Musconetcong Valley and the “hummocky, tumultuous character of the moraine to the north”. 

In 2006, through an Act of Congress, segments of the Musconetcong were recognized for their exceptional recreational, ecological value as being “Wild and Scenic". This designation sets standards to protect these parts of the river from many forms of degradation.

In 1992, the Musconetcong Watershed Association was formed by local residents who were interested in preserving the region's unique natural and cultural resources. The founders saw the need for a local organization composed of individuals from different backgrounds who shared the common goal of promoting a watershed-based approach to land and river resource management throughout the Musconetcong River Watershed.

For over three decades, the Association has dedicated itself to providing the area with volunteer water quality monitoring, educational seminars for property owners, teachers and local officials, and annual river cleanups. MWA’s founders were instrumental in making the Musconetcong River valley a high priority for the New Jersey Department of Environment protection (NJDEP) Green Acres land acquisition program during the 1990s. 

With a current membership base composed of families, businesses, partner organizations, and municipalities, the Musconetcong Watershed Association actively engages with the wider community. The MWA hosts and supports public education programs, river cleanups, municipal outreach and ordinance review, water quality monitoring, watershed management planning, and promotion of appropriate and scientifically sound state environmental legislation. The MWA's strategic plan focuses on the four key pillars of Planning, Education, Advocacy and Stewardship. This Vision Plan aligns with those four goals and advances our shared vision.

You can learn more about the Musconetcong Watershed Association at  www.musconetcong.org.  We encourage you to stay involved and become a member!

Numerous studies, reports and river management plans for the Musconetcong Watershed have stressed the need for specific action to protect the Musconetcong for future generations. But how can we advocate for protecting the river when residents, business owners and frequent visitors also have immediate needs? 

Over the last year, we actively listened to residents, business owners, visitors and others in the watershed about their concerns and hopes for a brighter future. This Musconetcong Watershed Vision Plan will reflect these concerns and hopes - and identify a consensus-based view of a healthy ecosystem that is resilient to threats, restored as needed and a valued part of the communities where the river and its aquifers flow.

We are not yet done developing the plan to support our shared vision! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please share them with us by using the link below or emailing Laura Gould at laura@musconetcong.org.