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Berry's Creek
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Berry's Creek
Berry's Creek (sometimes referred to as Berrys Creek or Berry Creek) is a tributary of the Hackensack River in the New Jersey Meadowlands in Bergen County, New Jersey. The creek watershed contains a diverse array of wetlands, marshes, and wildlife. The creek runs through a densely populated region and has been subject to extensive industrial pollution during the 19th and 20th centuries. Several companies discharged toxic chemicals into the creek in the 20th century, and these chemicals have remained in the sediment. The creek has the highest concentrations of methyl mercury of any freshwater sediment in the world. Portions of the creek watershed are Superfund sites, and cleanup projects began in the late 20th century.
The creek is named for Major John Berry, an early British settler and Deputy Governor of New Jersey. Settlement of New Jersey by European colonists began in the 17th century. Increasing settlements in the early 19th century were accompanied by human alterations to the land in the Hackensack meadowlands, such as clearing forests; building roads, railroads and ditches; and filling wetlands. The Second Industrial Revolution led to construction of heavy manufacturing, storage tanks, and chemical processing plants in the area during the late 19th & early 20th centuries. Upland areas in the Berry's Creek watershed were developed by 1900. In the 1930s municipal sewage discharges began to contribute significant amount of pollutants to the creek and the Hackensack River. (All sewage pipes to the creek were removed by the 1990s.)
Urbanization in the region intensified after World War II, with the expansion of roads and highways, including the New Jersey Turnpike (1952), as well as the Meadowlands Sports Complex (1970s). Tide gates were installed in the 1960s to control flooding, and these installations altered the water levels and flows, which consequently altered the ecosystem. The filling of wetlands during the 20th century amounted to a 63% loss of wetlands in the watershed.
Berry's Creek is largely a tidal estuary, along with the Hackensack River. It rises at the East and West Riser Ditches in Teterboro, some of which is within the bounds of Teterboro Airport. The main channel of the creek runs for 4.5 miles (7.2 km), winding through Moonachie and Carlstadt. In East Rutherford, the creek forms the western boundary at Walden Marsh, of the Meadowlands Sports Complex. Additional portions of the creek are located in Wood-Ridge.
Continuing under Route 3, the creek divides into the creek mainstem and Berry's Creek Canal. The canal was built in 1911, and runs in a straight line through East Rutherford to the Hackensack River. The creek mainstem enters Rutherford and then forms the boundary between Rutherford and Lyndhurst until it reaches the Hackensack.
The Berry's Creek watershed is 12 square miles (31 km2), which includes 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2) of tidal waterways and marshes and 10.4 square miles (27 km2) of highly-developed upland areas. Within the watershed are many commercial and light industrial sites, portions of the sports complex, several closed landfills, and many roads and highways.
Walden Marsh was built in the 1980s adjacent to the sports complex, as part of environmental mitigation for flood prevention measures that were installed.
Berry’s Creek was subject to extensive industrial pollution during the 19th and 20th centuries.
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Berry's Creek
Berry's Creek (sometimes referred to as Berrys Creek or Berry Creek) is a tributary of the Hackensack River in the New Jersey Meadowlands in Bergen County, New Jersey. The creek watershed contains a diverse array of wetlands, marshes, and wildlife. The creek runs through a densely populated region and has been subject to extensive industrial pollution during the 19th and 20th centuries. Several companies discharged toxic chemicals into the creek in the 20th century, and these chemicals have remained in the sediment. The creek has the highest concentrations of methyl mercury of any freshwater sediment in the world. Portions of the creek watershed are Superfund sites, and cleanup projects began in the late 20th century.
The creek is named for Major John Berry, an early British settler and Deputy Governor of New Jersey. Settlement of New Jersey by European colonists began in the 17th century. Increasing settlements in the early 19th century were accompanied by human alterations to the land in the Hackensack meadowlands, such as clearing forests; building roads, railroads and ditches; and filling wetlands. The Second Industrial Revolution led to construction of heavy manufacturing, storage tanks, and chemical processing plants in the area during the late 19th & early 20th centuries. Upland areas in the Berry's Creek watershed were developed by 1900. In the 1930s municipal sewage discharges began to contribute significant amount of pollutants to the creek and the Hackensack River. (All sewage pipes to the creek were removed by the 1990s.)
Urbanization in the region intensified after World War II, with the expansion of roads and highways, including the New Jersey Turnpike (1952), as well as the Meadowlands Sports Complex (1970s). Tide gates were installed in the 1960s to control flooding, and these installations altered the water levels and flows, which consequently altered the ecosystem. The filling of wetlands during the 20th century amounted to a 63% loss of wetlands in the watershed.
Berry's Creek is largely a tidal estuary, along with the Hackensack River. It rises at the East and West Riser Ditches in Teterboro, some of which is within the bounds of Teterboro Airport. The main channel of the creek runs for 4.5 miles (7.2 km), winding through Moonachie and Carlstadt. In East Rutherford, the creek forms the western boundary at Walden Marsh, of the Meadowlands Sports Complex. Additional portions of the creek are located in Wood-Ridge.
Continuing under Route 3, the creek divides into the creek mainstem and Berry's Creek Canal. The canal was built in 1911, and runs in a straight line through East Rutherford to the Hackensack River. The creek mainstem enters Rutherford and then forms the boundary between Rutherford and Lyndhurst until it reaches the Hackensack.
The Berry's Creek watershed is 12 square miles (31 km2), which includes 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2) of tidal waterways and marshes and 10.4 square miles (27 km2) of highly-developed upland areas. Within the watershed are many commercial and light industrial sites, portions of the sports complex, several closed landfills, and many roads and highways.
Walden Marsh was built in the 1980s adjacent to the sports complex, as part of environmental mitigation for flood prevention measures that were installed.
Berry’s Creek was subject to extensive industrial pollution during the 19th and 20th centuries.
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