Problem In the areas of the lower Hackensack Estuary, ninety percent of the land is just two feet above the high water mark. Fourteen municipalities share the basin (Meadowlands District) where flood protection mostly relies on a half a century old tide gate system. The system weaknesses were on display during Hurricane Sandy where faulty … Read more
The AmeriCorps NJ Watershed Ambassadors Year-end Meeting was held at the Meadowlands Environment Center. Guest speaker, Dr. Francisco Artigas, Director of the Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MRRI) gave an overview of the functions of MRRI. The Program Manager from NJDEP and all the Ambassadors from the State all attended the meeting.
MRRI’s FAA certified drone pilots start the annual vegetation monitoring campaign as the Meadowlands start blooming after the long winter. MRRI’s scientists assist the Natural Resources Department of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority to capture seasonal and successional changes in the vegetation of the remaining 8400 acre tidal wetlands in the lower Hackensack … Read more
The Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute has received a Broad Area Airspace Authorization for the Hackensack Meadowlands area. The broad area airspace authorization allows MRRI to conduct drone operations in Class D airspace governed by Teterboro Air Traffic Control’s jurisdiction. The authorization covers the growing season from May 03 through September 30, 2018.
Due to climate change and restricted tidal flow from sea walls and dikes planned as part of a resilience project, increased emissions of N2O and CH4 may occur. These factors along with the limited amount of fresh water flowing into the estuary from the upper Hackensack would then offset the reduction in radiative forcing currently … Read more
In April 2018, Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MRRI) laboratory finished their annual Proficiency Testing (PT) study. All of the 60 certified parameters, including trace metals, low-level mercury, PCBs, organochlorine pesticides, minerals, simple nutrients, pH and turbidity, have been evaluated and considered as acceptable. MRRI laboratory has been recognized as a Laboratory of Excellence for achieving … Read more
Scientists from the Department of Earth and Environmental Science Rutgers University Newark and MRRI scientists were trained by German engineers in the use of their new state- of-the- art Nordmeyer GEOTOOL . The Geotool is a precision drilling machine that will be used in near surface geophysical research to develop methods and technology to monitor … Read more
Using geophysical technologies to delineate and monitor saltwater intrusion within New Jersey coastal aquifers. A study, funded through a NJWRRI (New Jersey Water Resources Research Institute) research grant, used two geophysical methods, self-potential (SP) and electrical resistivity (ER) imaging to look at saltwater intrusion in Cape May County, NJ. SP measurements were collected in a … Read more
MRRI GIS Specialist Brian Wlodawski presented “Environmental and Industrial Site Assessment Using Drones” giving an overview of the capabilities and applications of current drone technology at the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) New Jersey Annual Conference.
I want to thank everyone who participated in Super Storm Sandy five years later. We had over 150 attendees, 28 oral presentations and over 20 posters. With a central theme of Super Storm Sandy five years later; presentations touched on a number of topics including: sediment and contaminate transport, assessing fugitive chemicals and exposure to … Read more