Group Seeks Grant to Study Flood Control Efforts

A non-profit organization based in Hillsborough will be applying for a grant to help give the Raritan-Mllstone Flood Control Commission a kickstart.

Angela Clerico, of the World Institute for Natural Resources (WINS), told the Township Committee last week that the $10,000 Sustainable Jersey grant funded by PSE&G, will be used to gather and study all of the literature and studies about flooding in the Raritan and Millstone rivers that serve as the northern and eastern borders of the township.

“What is out there already?” she said.

The Raritan-Millstone Flood Commission was formed to explore ways in which the flooding along the two rivers can be mitigated. A similar commission, the Green Brook Flood Control Commission, was created in the mid-1970s to address flooding in the area of the Green Brook in eastern Somerset County and northern Middlesex County.

Now, more than three decades since the Green Brook Flood Control Commission’s founding, the first phase of work around flood-plagued Bound Brook is nearing completion with working underway on mitigation measures in Green Brook and Middlesex Borough.

While these measures, overseen by the Army Corps of Engineers, have focused on Bound Brook, relatively little work has been done on the flooding on the Millstone River or on the Raritan River upstream from Bound Brook.

Last year, Tropical Storm Irene brought torrential rains to the Central Jersey and significant flooding to the Raritan-Millstone basin with damages estimated in the millions of dollars.

Belonging to the Raritan-Millstone Flood Commission, which held its first meeting earlier this year, are Hillsborough, Manville, Millstone, Rocky Hill, Montgomery, Franklin, Bridgewater, Somerville, South Bound Brook and Somerset County.

Assembly members Jack Ciatarelli and Donna Simon have introduced legislation to create the Hunterdon, Somerset Flood Advisory Task Force to work with the Raritan-Millstone Flood Commission to study flooding in the basin.

Clerico said the three-month study, which could be paid for by the end of 2012 if funded, would review three decades’ worth of reports and studies about the flooding to understand what recommendations have been made and whether they have been implemented.

“We’re looking at it as a whole watershed, instead of looking at it by municipality,” Clerico said.

According to Manville Mayor Angelo Corradino, the Army Corps of Engineers started a study of the flooding about a decade ago but the work has not been completed because funds have dried up.

Clerico said the project would be a good starting point for the Raritan-Millstone Flood Control Commission.

World Institute for Natural Systems promotes the role of natural processes and systems in sustainable development. The organization applies these principals toward the optimal management of natural resources and their connected water, energy, land, and agricultural systems. WINS supports research and development of new approaches and technologies, policy research and advocacy, professional development and capacity building and public education and outreach.

The Township Committee unanimously endorsed the organization’s grant request.

“We like working with you,” Mayor Carl Suraci said.