Site ID: DB01
Mount Olive Township, Morris County
Stream Category: FW2-NT(C1) (Category 1, Non-trout waters)
Site monitors Drakes Brook (below Eyland Ave) subwatershed (HUC: 02030105010010)
The site is located downstream of the driveway bridge to St. Elizabeth’s Church; the riffle is located behind the gazebo. Please request permission from the church before accessing the site.
What is being monitored at this site?
Each June, Raritan Headwaters scientists and volunteers visit 72 stream sites in the North and South Branch Raritan Watershed Region (WMA8) of New Jersey to collect data on the health of our streams. Data collected includes a sample of benthic macroinvertebrates (used to calculate the High Gradient Macroinvertebrate Index;HGMI score), an assessment of the habitat in and around the stream, and chemical conditions in the water. Chemical parameters include dissolved oxygen, phosphate, chloride, specific conductance, nitrate, turbidity, pH, and temperature. The HGMI is used by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to determine if the site is meeting state and national water quality standards under the Clean Water Act. Click here to learn more about our stream monitoring program and water quality reports.
Select a parameter below to view annual data. Hover over the chart to get more information.
The HGMI at DB01 was found to be good in 2019, which means it was not biologically impaired.The biggest water quality issues that we found at this site were insufficient riparian buffer width and high levels of phosphates in the water. Most of the anthropogenic phosphates in streams comes from stormwater run-off, wastewater treatment plants, and septic systems. High levels of nutrients such as phosphates and nitrates cause an overgrowth of bacteria and algae and eventually result in oxygen depletion. More sustainable farming practices and keeping an intact riparian buffer may help to increase water quality in this stream.
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