Site ID: SB09
Branchburg & Hillsborough Township , Hunterdon County
Stream Category: FW2-NT (Category 2, Non-trout waters)
Site monitors Raritan River South Branch (NB to Pleasant Run) subwatershed (HUC: 02030105040040)
The site is located across the street from South Branch Reformed Church; the sample riffle is on the far side of the island.
What is being monitored at this site?
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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 SB09 was found to be good in 2019, which means it was not biologically impaired. This site is located within an agriculturally rich section of our watershed, which means that run off from farm fields as well as lack of riparian buffers are likely negatively impacting the water quality of this stream. Unlike the HGMI, the habitat scored sub-optimal. This site suffers from heavy bank erosion, lack of bank vegetative protection, and insufficient riparian zone width. Increasing the bank vegetative cover and widening the riparian zone will help to decrease the bank erosion and increase bank stability at this site.
Many people take clean water for granted, but we know it takes vigilance and hard work to protect the water in our rivers, streams and homes.
And we can’t do it alone. We need your help to ensure that everyone within our reach has access to safe, clean water that is swimmable, fishable and, above all, drinkable.
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