Raritan River Initiatives
The Raritan River has a rich history, which includes strong ties to Rutgers University. A number of entities from across the university are collaborating to transform the Raritan Basin into an interactive field laboratory that enhances the student experience, encourages and supports transdisciplinary research, and addresses real-world concerns of regional stakeholders.
Sustainable Raritan River Initiative (SRRI)
Rutgers University launched the Sustainable Raritan River Initiative (“SRRI”) in 2009 to bring together concerned scientists, environmentalists, engineers, businesses, community leaders and governmental entities to craft an agenda that meets the goals of the U.S. Clean Water Act to restore and preserve New Jersey’s Raritan River, its tributaries and its bay.
The Initiative, a joint program of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy (EJB) and the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), partners with other Rutgers schools, centers and programs to ensure the best contributions from the sciences, planning and policy. The Initiative conducts conferences and topical workshops, provides technical assistance, and develops anchor projects that raise the profile of the Raritan River. Jeanne Herb and Richard G. Lathrop, Jr., serve as co-leaders of the Sustainable Raritan River Initiative.
Rutgers Raritan River Consortium (R3C)
R3C is a collaborative effort at Rutgers University’s New Brunswick-Piscataway campus that recognizes the critical value of the Raritan and its environs to the social, economic and ecological integrity of the region that Rutgers calls home. Our mission is to utilize Rutgers’ proximity to the Raritan to inform university-based education, research and scholarship and to apply our efforts, in collaboration with Raritan partners, to advance improvements in regional planning, policy and decision-making that positively affect the ecology and economy of the Raritan region. Read more in the 2016 Public Announcement.
Johnson Family Chair in Water Resources and Watershed Ecology (JFC)
On December 15, 2015, the Rutgers Board of Governors appointed Richard G. Lathrop Jr., professor of environmental monitoring at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, as the inaugural holder of the Johnson Family Chair in Water Resources and Watershed Ecology.
Besides his teaching responsibilities, Lathrop, a professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, is the faculty director of the Rutgers Ecological Preserve. over 350 acres, the preserve features several streams that feed into the Raritan River and numerous public hiking and biking trails. He also directs the Grant F. Walton Center for Remote Sensing and Spatial Analysis, whose mission is to promote the development and application of geospatial information science and technology to address issues in the environment, natural resources and agriculture.
For more information, contact Rick Lathrop at lathrop@crssa.rutgers.edu or (848) 932-1580.
Resources & Updates
Rutgers Raritan River Consortium Summary
2016 Sustainable Raritan Award Recipients
Eight individuals and organizations received Sustainable Raritan River Awards at the 8th Annual Sustainable Raritan Conference and Awards Ceremony at Rutgers’ Douglass Student Center on Friday, June 10, 2016. "The purpose of these awards is to recognize some of the...
Coastal Sediment Archives Can Guide Resilience Planning
Coastal wetlands are beneficial to our natural and human ecosystems. They are incredibly important during intense weather events, like hurricanes, because they act as buffers and slow winds and storm surges down, lessening the impact to the nearby built environments....
Dr. Ken Mitchell Describes History of Raritan Flooding at Annual Conference
The Raritan River Basin has a long history of flooding events. Communities along the river have documented high water over the past three centuries. With an expansive watershed, the Raritan's floodplain stretches over an area of 94,000 acres. Due to a history of...
Questionnaire Provides New Jersey Communities with Resilience Evaluation Tool
Many communities in New Jersey are facing problems from flooding whether or not they are along the coast. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Coastal Management Office developed an online questionnaire for any New Jersey municipality to use called...
Dr. Robert Chant Researches Raritan River Estuary Sediment Transport
Dr. Robert Chant, a professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, is researching sediment and contaminant transport in the Raritan River Estuary. The import and export of sediment in the Raritan River Estuary...
8th Annual Sustainable Raritan River Conference
RU on the Raritan Conference Exploring an agenda for Rutgers’ stewardship of the Raritan River, basin and bay Friday, June 10, 2016, Douglass Student Center, New Brunswick, NJ 8th Annual Sustainable Raritan River Conference In celebration of Rutgers University’s 250th...
Two States: One Bay Conference Summary is Available
The Two States: One Bay conference, convened on June 12, 2015 by the Sustainable Raritan River Initiative and the New York-New Jersey Harbor & Estuary Program, brought together more than 200 representatives from federal, state and local governments, educational...
Herb and Lathrop to Co-Lead the Sustainable Raritan River Initiative
Dr. Richard Lathrop from the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and Jeanne Herb from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy have been named co‑leaders of the Sustainable Raritan River Initiative, which is a joint program of the two...