Environmental Ed Center Gets its Furniture. Step by step the Eugene Young Environmental Education Center on River Road at the Native Plant Reserve is being outfitted. New furniture will allow new activities to serve youth groups and adults interested in the local Highland Park (NJ) natural environment, or in hearing talks on all manner of environmental subjects.

Furniture was unpacked and set up just before the end of January 2008. This gives us a work table, a cabinet with work-table top and with storage below, and other cabinets, in addition to a table and chairs set up earlier. Maps of Highland Park, especially natural aspects like wetlands and flood plains, are now available to see there. Various things have also been donated, such as nature and science books and magazines and also a magazine rack. 2/2008

Workshops Starting for Community Wildlife Habitat Project. On Wednesday, January 30, 2008, the Highland Park Community Wildlife Habitat Project will present the first of three workshops open to all the public. The title of the first is "NJ's Least Wanted." It's all about what many scientists see as one of the major environmental problems: non-native invasive plants. Invasives are everywhere: in our open spaces, roadsides, and...maybe even in your backyard! They're a major ecological and management problem that's costing the economy billions each year--and the problem keeps getting worse. Come to the Highland Park Senior Center Wednesday 1/30/08 at 7:30 p.m. and find out what they are, what can be done about them, and why they're "NJ's Least Wanted"! 1/2008

Uncle Sam Attacks Exotic Invaders in The Meadows. Highland Park is now a "partner" with US Fish & Wildlife for controlling invasive plants intruding on the recovering woods and fields of our Meadows, part of which was formerly landfill. If you walk the path you'll see dozens of cut-down shrubs already, with more work to come.

The Edison Wetlands Association made the initial contacts leading to our participation in the federal "Partners for Wildlife" program, and Mayor Frank signed on the Borough's behalf. Representatives of Fish & Wildlife have already been on site cutting exotic bush honeysuckle and escaped Japanese wisteria, each of which is capable of closing a trail and blotting out native vegetation. (We've been hand-cutting them for years just to keep the trail open; now the power tools of Uncle Sam will let us achieve much more.)

Later in November or December a larger group, including volunteers, will get to work alongside the professionals. As with all invasive-plant projects, of course, 100% removal is scarcely to be expected, and even the degree of control that we do expect to achieve will take some years. But in the priority spots already cleared, we already have a new openness that will give native seeds their chance for reestablishing themselves. 11/2007

Environmental Education Center Gets its First Use. The Eugene Young Environmental Education Center at the Native Plant Reserve (River Road, Highland Park) has had its first actual use by groups, aside from the public preview "opening" last April. (It is still, however, not generally open to the public, pending some legal work and final sign-off.) This first meeting in the center was June 9, a small meeting of some members of the Environmental Education Centers Working Group. (This is the group of representatives of the Environmental Commission and Shade Tree Advisory Committee that has been involved in the project all along, so some of us had been in the building many times inspecting it, but not having a meeting.) Not only did we meet, some of us got up on the "green roof" and gave it its first weeding. (Have you ever tried pulling out the weed "tear-thumb"? Even with gloves you find out why this thorny vine gets that name!)

Since then, the Green Community Working Group met there October 10 and November 8, and will have further meetings there. Eventually the Environmental Commission and Shade Tree Advisory Committee expect to meet there, too.

The first visit by a youth group was also November 8, but in the afternoon, when a group of Highland Park home-schoolers were given a tour and explanation of the energy-saving features of this passive solar building. (This group already had an association with the Native Plant Reserve, since some members had participated in weeding work-days earlier.) Arnold Henderson, chair of the Environmental Education Centers Working Group, led the tour, and some of the students gave a presentation on alternative energy as part of their preparation for the Lego Robot contest. 11/2007

Woodman Woodman Spare that Tree: HP's New Tree Law. The new tree protection ordinance passed by Borough Council in October still allows people to cut trees down on their property, but the larger trees (3 inches and up in diameter) now require a permit process. So apply before you cut.

The law is based on the premise that trees, at least when healthy, provide benefits to all borough citizens. To keep Highland Park's tree numbers up, the permit may require you to replace the functions of that tree by either planting one (or more) smaller ones or else donating money to the borough's tree replacement fund. (Actually, this has been the law for years, but there are many changes and simplifications in the new law, which covers somewhat smaller trees.)

Seriously sick trees and hazard trees that must be removed for safety, still need the permit (which may lead to inspection or expert advice, when required), but for such trees you probably will not be expected to plant a replacement or make a payment to the tree replacement fund (ask Code Enforcement in specific cases).

Below 3 inches, you're generally free to cut or pull all the unwanted saplings you wish without permit (with possibly rare exceptions, such as young but rare/endangered or otherwise exceptional trees you're not likely to have). For any 3-inch or larger tree, though, apply for a permit ($100) from the Department of Code Enforcement (lower floor, Borough Hall, 221 South Fifth). 10/2007

Snapper VS Egyptian Geese: The Standoff. Donaldson Park offers some unusual wildlife moments if you just keep watch and walk or drive slowly enough not to scare the creatures away. Here natural enemies, a snapping turtle and the park's six resident Egyptian geese, eye each other. The geese keep their distance, the turtle shrinks into its protective shell. People ought also to keep their distance: the snapping turtle can dart its head out farther and faster than you might think. So if you see one like this, do what the geese do, keep your distance. 10/2007

Now You Can Recycle 1 Through 7. More kinds of plastic are now recyclable in Highland Park (NJ): any marked 1 through 7, which is most bottles and vials. 10/2007

Join HP's Online Environmental Discussion Forum. The Highland Park Green Community Working Group has set up an online discussion forum on environmental issues in Highland Park. All are encouraged to join and share their experiences and information, especially on eco-friendly alternatives.
To sign onto the discussion forum as a new member: http://greenhp.org/forum . 10/2007

Gandhi Inspires Weed-Pulling. Once again, for Gandhi Day, the Highland Park (NJ) Native Plant Reserve on River Road was thronged with students and others from the Association of Indians at Rutgers. Each year, Gandhi's October 2 birthday is an occasion for various good works for the community. On the following Saturday, October 6, the students' two-hour weeding of the central bed at the reserve was certainly a good work, giving our native plants there some room to flourish. 10/2007

Egyptian Geese: Settling in? Egyptian geese (Alopochen aegyptiacus) have been seen each year in Highland Park's Donaldson and Johnson Parks for several years now. They've often been seen with young, but only now are they seemingly secure enough that the young are reaching adulthood without being picked off by a roaming dog or submerged snapping turtle. Six were on the pond bank in Donaldson October 12, with the young near enough to full adulthood that it was hard to say which they were. They are, of course, a nonnative species for the Americas, shipped from Egypt to our farms and zoos, and then escaping. Since our first sightings, people from New York State to North Carolina, Florida, and Texas have contacted our web site exchanging observations of their geese. 10/2007

Where's George? In Higland Park! Back in December of 1998 (according to Wikipedia, source for our information), a Massachusetts database consultant named Hank Eskin started a site for tracking the natural circulation of U.S. paper money. Users report bills to the site (more than 110 million bills so far, mostly ones). When the same bill gets reported a second time or more, a trail is established that gradually builds up patterns. Some bills are stamped with a message to go to wheresgeorge.com, others are unmarked. One study drew on the circulation of bills to clarify the pattern of travel, and from that to predict likely patterns of the spread of infection! So it's serious stuff, but also fun, and now one of the bills is known to have come through Highland Park.

During the first five days of September, 2007, Natalie Henderson of Highland Park, NJ, received one of the marked bills in New York City and brought it home. Checking the site showed the bill to have been initially registered in Meriden, CT, June 21, 2007. We were sort of hoping to find it had been through Bangkok, or at least Keokuk, but it's had less than three months, so give it time.

Since our own site is an environmental one, the other tracking we tried to do in Highland Park was of our local goose population. Some years back we reported the numbers of dozens of neck-tagged Canada geese to get the scientists to respond and say where they were tagged. We were hoping for, say, Baffin Island, but the only one we got an answer for came back as origin Metuchen! It turns out that the study wasn't intended to be of migratory geese, but of the apparently nonmigratory park geese. The result shows that the park geese did indeed shuffle back and forth, though only a little. So the next time someone asks you how Canada geese are like dollar bills, you can tell them: they both shuttle back and forth around Highland Park, NJ. 9/2007

Donaldson Park Phase II Starts: Going Native? The continuing renovation of Donaldson Park on the Raritan River in Highland Park (NJ) is moving into the second of its two phases. Phase II will renovate the two ends of the park, now that Phase I work on the center was completed in early 2007.

The first actual Phase II work occurred on August 27, with the placing of silt fences at the southeast end of the park. Silt fences are intended to prevent any spilled or washed-away soil from the construction areas to be carried into streams and "muddying the waters," with possibly killing effect on fish and small water life. Features being created include a new restroom for that end of the park, improved parking and sports areas, and plantings.

The Middlesex County Department of Parks and Recreation prepared the final plan and is managing the work. Its head, Ralph Albanir, consulted extensively a few years back with Highland Park officials and members of the Environmental Commission/Environmental Centers Working Group. Our advice included plantings of native riverine species, and we look forward to seeing what could finally be incorporated. This significant return of land to approximately natural conditions will be the "environmental" highlight of the project. Phase II plantings are expected next spring, or perhaps starting this fall, after completion of the "hardscape" of restroom and parking areas. 8/2007

Our Volunteers Honored: Bowers, Henderson, Rosenberg. The core members of the Environmental Centers Working Group were honored at Volunteers Appreciation Night April 24, 2007, for their multi-year guidance in designing the nearly finished Eugene Young Environmental Education Center at the Highland Park (NJ) Native Plant Reserve. They are Ruth Bowers, Arnold Henderson (chair), and Mike Rosenberg.

The scope of the Working Group extends beyond the center building itself to include "environmental centers" of various sorts throughout the borough's open space. The first completed project was actually at the other end of the borough: a multi-user path and nature trail to Donaldson Park from the Southside Bikeway. Still in progress is the laying out of a loop trail through The Meadows, the wild area downstream of Donaldson Park.

The working Group was created by Mayor Frank from an earlier larger group of advisers. Its core consisted of the officers of the Environmental Commission and the Shade Tree Advisory Committee. Eugene Young, as a retired council member, was a fourth key member until his death toward the end of the planning process. The center was then named for him, and his place on the Working Group was taken by Loren Muldowney. Many others gave informal advice. The center, though details are not quite complete, preventing public use before fall, is near enough finished that the Working Group was actually able to weed its "green roof" and meet in its glass-walled main room on June 6th: the first use of the center. 8/2007

Deer, Deer, O Dear! Some of us may not get into nature as often as we'd like, but more and more it's the nature that is coming to us. And eating our gardens. These deer, a mother and two fawns, were photographed on Lawrence Avenue near the intersection with Lincoln, but many parts of Highland Park NJ are now seeing regular deer visits (and snacks on bushes and flowers).

Probably several factors go toward this increase in deer presence nibbling away yards and forest understories. First, there are more deer today than when the Native Americans were hunting them—alongside mountain lions, wolves, and bears. With the loss of such predators comes more survival. Then, with the increase in what we innocuously call "development," these surviving deer are packed into smaller and smaller bits of nature. This encourages them to slip out to the delicious restaurants we've been planting on our yards.

The latest theory of a new contributing factor to deer overpopulation is lawns. By planting what are known as cool season turf grasses for lawns and parks, we have replaced native grasses (which go dry in winter) with exotic grasses that stay green through the cool season. This provides unnaturally abundant fresh green grazing in late winter. That's when the does have their pregnancies. They use the added nutrition to produce more young in spring than was the natural level with the native vegetation. And no, Kentucky bluegrass is not a native Kentuckian; it came across with the colonists and simply took hold most spectacularly in Kentucky's limestone soil, and from there to our lawns and a new ingredient for deer dinners. You can see lists of (relatively) deer-resistant plants in the Environmental Information drawer in the Highland Park Public library Reference Department (see folders on Plantings and related topics). 7/2007

Report Those Eagles! As bald eagle sightings continue in central New Jersey and right here on the Raritan in Highland Park NJ, local environmental groups are trying to assemble information in one place, a list maintained by Edison Wetlands Association. (A local list for Highland Park itself is on our own environmental web site under "Biodiversity": monthly lists of eagles and all the other birds, courtesy of Joanne Williams.) The Home News-Tribune recently published the following contact information from Edison Wetlands Association.

"Bald eagle sightings in Middlesex County can be reported to the Edison Wetlands Association at 2035 Route 27, Suite 1190, Edison, or calling (732) 287-5111 or e-mailing ewainfo@edisonwetlands.org. They can also be reported to the state Department of Environmental Protection at (609) 292-9400 or on its Web site at www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensphome.htm.

Sightings and additional information are available by contacting the New Jersey Audubon Society at (732) 872-2500 or on the organization's Web site at www.njaudubon.org. Information on bird sightings also can be found on the Highland Park Environmental Commission's Web site at www.leoraw.com/hpenv and the East Brunswick Environmental Commission's Web site at www.njnaturenotes.com." 7/2007

And Black Skimmer Makes Ten. Highland Park has now documented its tenth species of endangered or threatened bird using our river and woods over the last couple of years. On June 4, a black skimmer (Rynchops niger) cruised the Raritan at Donaldson Park and was seen by two sets of observers. Stefan Maurer and Holly Carley saw it off one end of the park, and Belinda Beetham saw it as it passed the other. This is a bird you'd expect down at the shore, but Highland Park is not as far ecologically from the shore as it may seem when you try to drive it on a summer weekend. Our Raritan is still tidal, still brackish, and just downstream widens into Raritan Bay. Skimmers nest at Sandy Hook. So it seems one decided to follow the fish and bring us a touch of ocean.

Our full list as reported to the state Fish & Wildlife people now reads:
Endangered Birds: least tern, peregrine falcon, pied-billed grebe.
Threatened Birds: bald eagle, black-crowned night heron, black skimmer, Coopers hawk, osprey, red-headed woodpecker, Savannah sparrow. 6/2007

Arnold Clayton Henderson in the Press. Your newswriter, Arnold Henderson, has been writing this news column from the start, and now I have my moment in the news myself. The Star-Ledger Middlesex Extra ran a profile on me in their "Meet your neighbors" series May 10, 2007. They title the article "A tireless contributor to the greening of Highland Park." Now at last you can find out all my multifarious (nefarious?) activities over the years. 6/2007

Book & Record Sale. Books and records deserve a new life. We don't know yet if Highland Park will revive its library benefit book sale this fall, but for now there are a couple of days left to donate vinyl records as well as books to the Piscataway Library sale, Kennedy Library, 500 Hoes Lane (732-463-1633). Then buy some Friday June 22 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Saturday June 23 (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

There's also www.craigslist.org (in its new central NJ section), where you can post anything for sale locally, and www.freecycle.org for giveaways in Middlesex County. And if all fails, books are paper: rip off hard covers and toss in mixed paper recycling. Mine have gone every route. 6/2007

Environmental Ed Center Gets Solar Crosswalks, Seeding. The Eugene Young Environmental Education Center at Highland Park's Native Plant Reserve is moving along, though not yet open for use. The latest additions are double glass doors on the river-facing side of the building and solar-powered crosswalk signals to help pedestrians more safely cross busy River Road at Walter, Harrison, and Cleveland Avenues.

Grass has also been seeded: a special "no mow mix" that ought at least to need less mowing than most lawns. Much of the grass cover you see is temporary, though, to hold our newly spread topsoil against erosion. It will later be replaced by dense plantings of native trees and shrubs.

The center itself will soon have its cabinets and other furnishings, with plantings and solar panels hoped for before long. As the project is funded by grant money rather than tax money, some of these elements have been delayed while funding is sought. 5/2007

More Environmental Information at the Library. A new batch of environmental information has been added to the collection we maintain at the Highland Park (NJ) Public Library. Hot topics include native plants for your yard, plants resistant to deer, tips for your home environment and energy saving, and borough environmental information. The index on this web site gives an idea of the hundreds of topics but never quite keeps up with all the new things added, so when you're in the library you might as well go to the folder that sounds of interest to you and just browse. The environmental information cabinet is in the Reference Department, in the left rear corner as you enter. 5/2007

Earthday walk at the Rutgers Ecological Preserve, April 21. On Saturday, April 21, the Friends of the Ecological Preserve (FREP) and NJ Community Water Watch Livingston Chapter, will organize a tour and cleanup of the reserve, one of the finest forest patches left in Middlesex County. Meeting Place is the Livingston Campus Parking Lot of the Preserve, 12:00 Noon. But you can't park there. Directions: River Road to Cedar Lane; turn left onto Road One and left on Road Three. The lot will be on your left. It has a barricade so you will not be able to park there. Additional parking located by dorms. 4/2007

Community Wildlife Habitat Project Underway In Highland Park. The Highland Park Environmental Commission is undertaking a project to have our community certified as a National Wildlife Federation “Community Wildlife Habitat.” The Community Wildlife Habitat project will enhance and create urban habitats in Highland Park to give wildlife more opportunities to find food, water, shelter, and places to raise their young.

"This effort will help create better habitat for wildlife and will also contribute to a more sustainable community for everyone,” said Environmental Commission member Steve Barnes, who is acting as coordinator for the project.

The Project will begin by forming a project team, developing a plan of action, and registering the project with NWF. To obtain the certification total of 350 “points” they need to be accumulated through backyard and schoolyard habitat projects, educational efforts, and a variety of other activities. Certification will bring us national recognition, and we have a chance to be the first certified community in New Jersey.

If you’d like to be a member of the Team, contact Steve Barnes via email through the Environmental Commission web site. Additional information about the project will also be available soon on the web site. 4/2007

Earthday & the Center is Opening! The Eugene Young Environmental Education Center in Highland Park will formally open this Sunday, April 22. The ceremony is the start of that day's events at four open-space sites in town. We're announcing progress on four major projects to improve Highland Park's environment. Schedule: 2 p.m. at the Center, River Road opposite Walter Street just north of the Route 27 bridge; 3 p.m. Centennial Park across the street (newly and thickly planted); 3:30 p.m. Donaldson Street at the end of South Seventh for presentation of alternative concepts for an international garden near the head of the Southside Bikeway; 4:30 p.m. come down to the foot of the bikeway next to South Fifth and Valentine for a tour of the open portion of the new trail to the river through the Meadows Natural Area. It's all coming together, in every part of town! 4/2007

Invasive Plants Talk! Thursday April 12, 2007. No, invasive plants don't talk, though they do devour things…like landscapes. But there's a talk about invasive plants by Steve Barnes on Thursday evening, April 12, at 6:30 p.m. at Highland Park's Senior/Youth Center. The specific topic is "NJ's Least Wanted" program. 4/2007

Sustainable Living Talk April 12. We received this announcement from the East Brunswick Environmental Commission: "Congressman Rush Holt will present a talk at the East Brunswick Senior Center on Thursday, April 12th, 2007, at 7:30 PM. His topic "Sustainable Living in New Jersey: A Discussion with Rush Holt" will focus on environmental issues. This event is open to all people throughout the region.... The East Brunswick Senior Center is in the same complex with the Library and the Municipal Center, just off of Ryders Lane on Civic Center Drive." 4/2007

Earthday Opening for Environmental Education Center and More. For Earthday, April 22, Highland Park is having ceremonies for three open space projects. At 2 p.m. the ceremonies begin at the new Eugene Young Environmental Education Center at the Native Plant Reserve on River Road just north of Route 27. While the main plantings and some other features are still to come, the new building will give a focus for activities at the existing reserve (winner of an EPA Year 2000 Environmental Quality Award). Later in the summer, the reserve itself is expected to be transformed by soil amendment and new plantings.

At 3 p.m., across the road, there will be a ceremony for Centennial Park, the new entrance park for the town at the intersection of Route 27 and River Road. At its front edge will be a rain garden filled with native plants right at the busiest intersection in town.

At 4 p.m., across town at The Meadows Natural Area (South Fifth and Valentine), a ceremony will recognize further progress in the trail-making and rehabilitation of 16 acres of land along the Raritan River downstream of Donaldson Park. Once used for farming, and later in part as a landfill, the area has for three decades been reverting to fields and woods. The new trail will create a nearly mile-long loop for rustic walking on a woodland path right at the edge of town.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch (literally), our friends at Edison Wetlands Association will be celebrating Earthday from 12-3 at their Triple C Ranch, Tyler Road, Edison, NJ (off New York Blvd.). CORRECTION: TRIPLE C EVENT RESCHEDULED BECAUSE OF FLOODS; WILL BE SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 12-3 WITH RAIN DATE SUNDAY APRIL 29. EWA is working with us for our projects at the environmental education center and the Meadows. Their own Earthday celebration will have a petting zoo, nature walks, and more. So see them early, then come back to Highland Park for our 2 p.m. opening. 4/2007

Salamanders on the Move! Now! Is this our first massive migration of the spring? Salamanders aren't themselves massive, of course, but they can get numerous traveling on certain moist nights of March and April right here in Middlesex County. East Brunswick closes Beekman Road to cars so as to keep the salamanders safe as they emerge from their winter woodland burrows and trundle themselves down across the road to the rare vernal ponds of East Brunswick. They need vernal ponds for breeding since these are defined as early ponds that will dry up over the summer, preventing fish from getting established…and eating salamander young. Our friends at the East Brunswick Environmental Commission track the weather and announce road closings and likely salamander movement on their NJNatureNotes home page. So check there for the announced nights. There's also a link there to a wonderful salamander page for instructions and photos. Then show up with rain gear, flashlight, and maybe your kids; park in the designated area; and tread very very cautiously as you watch for little beasts crossing the road. 4/2007

Shred (and Recycle) Your Confidential Papers May 14. Provide secure disposal of your confidential papers by shredding them. A shredder truck will be at the Highland Park Senior/Youth Center, 220 South 6th Avenue, from 9 a.m. to noon on Monday, May 14, 2007 (but get there fast: if the truck fills up with shredded paper before noon, the event stops). Bring old files, receipts, bills, financial statements, or any document you have not recycled due to a confidentiality concern (but no books, magazines, newspapers). It's free, it's secure, and all that paper gets shredded, pulped, and recycled, too! For questions: email the Middlesex County Division of solid Waste Management at solidwaste@co.middlesex.nj.us or call 732-745-4170. 3/2007

Mercury Thermometer Exchange April 23. Mercury thermometers spill hazardous mercury if they break, so Highland Park residents are invited to turn in your old mercury fever thermometer(s) and receive a new mercury-free digital thermometer free (one digital thermometer per household, while supplies last). Bring thermometers in their storage cases or in a zip-lock bag to the Highland Park Senior/Youth Center, 220 South 6th Avenue, Monday April 23, 2007, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 3/2007

Catch Affluenza (the Film) Saturday March 24. The film Affluenza will be shown in the Highland Park Environmental Film Series. This PBS film diagnoses the "disease" of materialism and prescribes the antidote, simple living. The showing is Saturday March 24, 2007, 8 p.m., in Council Chambers, Borough Hall, 221 South 5th Avenue, Highland Park. This is the second (after "An Inconvenient Truth") in the continuing film series presented by the Highland Park (NJ) Environmental Commission. 3/2007

Highland Park & East Brunswick Top NJ Bird Count. In this year's Great Backyard Bird Count, people all across the country submitted lists of what birds they could find in local yards or parks that weekend of February 16-19. Here in New Jersey, the environmental commissions of Highland Park and nearby East Brunswick both sent out the word to local birders. The result: these two were the top contributors of any towns in New Jersey. Highland Park had 48 submitted lists, and East Brunswick 46. Aside from flocks of grackles, robins, or ring-billed gulls, highlights of the Highland Park list were several less often-seen birds: boat-tailed grackle, American tree sparrow, Carolina wren, white-breasted nuthatch, northern flicker, hairy woodpecker, red-bellied woodpecker, killdeer, Cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks, northern harrier (formerly "marsh hawk"), red-breasted merganser (5 at once!), common merganser, and ring-necked duck.

For Highland Park, an intriguing finding is that we submitted more lists (48) than the number of species we saw (43). Unusual. Is that a hint we need to put even more effort into improving the ecology of our riverfront so we can up our number of local species? Still, if our urban location may never match the richest species lists (70 from Lebanon, 69 from Egg Harbor Township), our 43 species in one weekend is already remarkable for an urban area.

See the complete Highland Park list of 43 species at the GBBC web site . 3/2007

International Star Count: Not Movie Stars, Real Stars. It's called Globe At Night and it's here again, March 8-21, 2007. Last year, ordinary citizens of 96 countries and every continent except Antarctica submitted reports of how well they saw one constellation, Orion. Citizen reports are combined on the web to produce a map of sky glow's effect in reducing star visibility around the globe. In future years, the tabulated results can be looked back on to measure what's changed. It's another example of useful 'citizen science.'

The rules: You just go out an hour after sunset some clear night, let your eyes adjust, then compare Orion with the provided sky charts. Does it match the chart of only the bright first-magnitude stars (all you can see if there's a lot of light pollution)? Or does it match the chart of second magnitude, or third, and so on, down to seventh (good eyes in a dark desert!).

In Highland Park, NJ, last year, your newswriter found third magnitude from both a residential street (with street lights) and from woods. Apparently general "sky glow" limits seeing about as much as a nearby street light. What will be this year's level? Can some of our viewers find dark spots in central New Jersey that allow seeing even fainter stars? If you find a spot down at fourth or fifth magnitude, let this site know. We need a good local star-watching spot. So if you're curious, check the Globe at Night site for the charts and instructions; then go hunt for Orion on any clear night(s) March 8-21. UPDATE: Again, your newswriter saw just to magnitude 3 (from the same street point as 2006). Did anyone find a darker spot? Let us know. 3/2007

A Forest Gem Makes the News In Highland Park NJ. The 370-acre Rutgers Ecological Preserve has long been a haunt for local birders, hikers, and students of environmental science here in the midst of one of the nation's densest urban areas. But it has been less known outside the three townships or municipalities in which it lies, Piscataway, Edison, and Highland Park. Now a newspaper feature gives it wider exposure throughout the state as a varied habitat of importance for bird migration as well as a long-time research area for Rutgers University environmental studies.

The article , in the March 1, 2007, Star-Ledger "Middlesex Ledger" section, is by the Edison Wetlands Association’s Director of Operations David Wheeler. The Edison Wetlands Association is Highland Park’s partner in projects for improving our natural open space. Wheeler wrote his article after exploring the Preserve, guided first by the Friends of the Rutgers Ecological Preserve (in the Piscataway section) and then by your own newswriter, Arnold Henderson, in the Highland Park and Edison sections. The distinction among sections is important because each government has set different zoning. Edison and Highland Park zone their portions, which run along the south edge of the Preserve, for conservation and as a research area for Rutgers environmental teaching. Piscataway allows some forms of development, at least if university related, in its much larger portion. Indeed, a northern portion of Piscataway’s share was recently taken for Route 18 extension and a smaller home-sized lot was sold to a Rutgers sports coach.

The Preserve’s importance beyond the local scene is one theme of Wheeler’s article: “The preserve is vast--only South Plainfield's Dismal Swamp is larger among natural areas in northern Middlesex County…. Bordering Johnson Park and the Raritan River, the preserve sits along the major migratory bird path, making it a stopover point for scores of birds.” Here in Highland Park, many walk the trails but may not be aware of this broader significance described in this article. See the article, and then click on our web site’s “Virtual Tour” box for photos. 3/2007

Environmental Center Getting Its Walking Surface. With an Earthday (April 22) ribbon-cutting approaching for the Eugene Young Environmental Education Center in Highland Park, NJ, workers in mid-February spread the crushed-stone walking surface on patio and paths. As a "universal access" surface, crushed stone allows use of wheelchairs and baby strollers, while also providing the many tiny crevices between stones that allow rainfall to sink into the soil. Our stone is a reddish color matching much of the natural rock underlying this region (and occasionally yielding dinosaur footprints, though alas none in town yet). In the next months we hope for installation of furniture, solar panels, signage, and, perhaps later in the season, soil amendment and plantings of native trees, shrubs, and meadow plants. By summer, the Environmental Education Center should be functioning as a new focus of activities in the Highland Park Native Plant Reserve along the Raritan River, winner of a 2000 US EPA Environmental Quality Award as an example of bringing the experience of the natural world into dense urban areas. 2/2007

Environmental Information Abounding at the Library. Highland Park NJ has devised a simple way to keep residents abreast of the many environmental booklets and information flyers produced by governmental and volunteer organizations. We simply gather up single copies of the best we see and drop them in folders by topic in the Environmental Information cabinet at the Highland Park Public Library.

The cabinet is in the far left corner as you enter the Reference Department. At the start of the folders is an index, then Boro Information and special studies of Highland Park (greenway, natural resources, open space list and plan by the Environmental Commission, and management plans for street trees/community forest). A special recent addition is the Rain Garden Manual prepared specifically for New Jersey conditions and native species by the Native Plant Society of New Jersey (in the Planting folder). Other folder topics include Nature, Nature Centers, Nature Catalogs/native plant nurseries, Pest Management, and Plantings. The environmental information index (though perhaps without the latest additions) is also on this web site in our Info section. 2/2007

Freecycle Recycles Free. It's not a government program as such, but the NJ DEP has posted information about a program operating in Middlesex County (and elsewhere) that lets you give things away to people who can use them (or get things for yourself). It's reuse rather than recycling in the strict sense, and that's even better as the object goes back into use without any need for melting it down, churning it to paper pulp, or any other reprocessing. Your newswriter has tried it, given away lots of stuff: it works! You just sign up for the program, list on the web what you want to give away, and wait for someone to contact you.

Here’s the DEP notice: “The Freecycle Network™ is an on-line materials exchange that allows people to donate unwanted items or obtain donated items at no cost. There is also no cost to join the Freecycle Network, which was formed as a way to promote waste reduction. There are almost 3,100 Freecycle groups in the United States at this time. For more details, visit
www.freecycle.org. ” 2/2007

Global Warming Discussion at Rutgers February 13, 2007. Rutgers has announced "an informational event entitled 'Global Warming: It's later than we think; but it's not too late!' on Tuesday, February 13, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in Nicholas Music Center on the Douglass Campus in New Brunswick. Come and listen to expert scientists and professionals from Rutgers University explain climate change from a New Jersey perspective and what Rutgers is doing to move us to climate action." 2/2007

Do You Live on a Stream? See the New Law. Highland Park may be unusual in the number of streams it has preserved-perhaps in your backyard. Mill Brook forms part of the east boundary with Edison. Johnson Brook (the stream below Crowells Road) forms another part of that boundary in the southeast part of town. Buell Brook in the Rutgers Ecological Preserve is the wildest. Unnamed streams flow at Valley Place Ravine and near the Southside Bikeway. All head to the Raritan River, and all deliver to that river whatever junk, trash, litter, motor oil, carwash detergent, lawn fertilizer, pesticides, and dog poop you let loose anywhere upstream.

To protect our streams, Highland Park passed a recent stream protection overlay ordinance. As an “overlay,” this doesn’t change the zoning of land along the stream—if you built your home in residential zoning, it’s still in residential zoning. But it’s also in the stream protection zone, so IF YOU LIVE ON A STREAM, PROTECT IT. See the ordinance before you plan anything drastic: you’ll need to avoid clear-cutting the natural vegetation, or putting up structures (within 50 feet of either top-of-bank or 100-year flood line), and avoid in general either polluting the stream, narrowing its course, or otherwise blocking its natural functions. See the environmental tips for homeowners , a brief pamphlet we wrote specifically for Highland Park and posted in the INFO section of our web site. Plant some nice native shrubs if you like, with berries for the birds and roots to keep your backyard soil from washing away.

Even if you don’t live on a stream, remember that all those storm drains in the streets run either into those streams or direct to the river. Decals have recently been placed on them to remind you: no waste should go into them. You’ll just have to carry that Styrofoam coffee cup and bag of dog poop till you reach a real trash can. 2/2007

Everything "Green" is Happening at Once. The beginning of the Highland Park environmental film series on February 11, 2007 (with a showing of Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth) was also an occasion for talking about the many different yet linked approaches the borough is taking to do something about that inconvenient truth of humanity's Bigfoot-like footprint on the planet. The public needs to get involved, and you can do it by clicking the CONTACT US box on this web site or the site of the Green Community Working Group (or Task Force). That group seeks to define measurable goals for the borough as a whole and to revise laws to achieve those goals. This, along with the central borough web site and other sites of environmental interest are all in our LINKS section.

Events to watch for this year: the Earthday (April 22) ribbon-cutting for the Eugene Young Environmental Center and also the Centennial Park (both on River Road), work on the Meadows trail (the woods downstream of Donaldson Park) under our $10,000 Recreational Trails Grant, a just-announced $3,000 grant we have won for revising our Community Forestry Management Plan (to manage street trees), a proposed international garden at the end of South Seventh, cooperative efforts with Rutgers landscape architects and environmental students for Highland Park’s open space, Middlesex County efforts to inventory and manage trees on county open space (eventually including that in Highland Park), cleanups along the river by Water Watch at Rutgers/Livingston, workdays by various community and university groups tending the Native Plant Reserve, and other projects for which grants are still being sought. Whew! Watch this news column for all these, and if you want to participate somehow, click CONTACT US. (Hint: there are still openings on the Shade Tree Advisory Committee, which advises on street trees and does actual planting work at the Native Plant Reserve and elsewhere.) 2/2007

Wildlife Rebounding Along the Raritan. David Wheeler of the Edison Wetlands Association (our partner in open space projects in Highland Park) has a recent article in the Star-Ledger on the return of wildlife to the Raritan watershed. 1/07

Christmas Bird Count: 98 Species, 67,000 birds. Each year volunteers from National Audubon Society (including several Highland Park residents) spend a wintry day seeking out the many birds that winter with us. How about a flock of 200 horned larks (this year), or 20,000 robins (last year)! Now our own web site is starting to reprint Audubon's tally for our area, the Lower Raritan Estuary (from Highland Park/New Brunswick down to the coast). This December 2006 count is the 99th count for our area, and similar counts take place all across the nation.

The bird count was designed about a century ago as a nonlethal replacement for the old gunning tradition of a Christmas Bird Hunt, where the shotgunners competed to see who could pile up the most dead birds in a single day! So some things in life do change for the better. 1/2007

Environmental Center Construction Continues. Dusk and a storm coming. The white frame for the shade structure has been raised up; later it received a coat of green paint. By the time the openings in the frame are filled with the final solar panels, it will provide good shelter from that storm or the hot summer sun, doubling the roofed area of the center. rev. 1/2007

» More on the Environmental Center!

Donaldson Park Phase I Nearing Completion. In Donaldson Park along the Raritan River in Highland Park, NJ, the first phase of a major reconstruction was nearing completion at the end of 2006, with contracting for Phase II to be done in 2007. The first phase covers the central third of this county park, with new boat ramp, gazebo, many native trees and shrubs planted around the pond and elsewhere, relocated and resurfaced parking areas, and a winding bicycle/pedestrian path separate from vehicular roads. The native plantings will shape the park into more of a natural area for "passive recreation," while improvements to playing fields will enhance "active recreation."

Phase II, which may get under way in 2007, will treat the two ends of the park and include an additional restroom at the east end of the park, near to the community garden and nature-watching opportunities at Highland Park’s only tidal marsh, in the extreme east end of the park adjoining The Meadows Natural Area. 11/2006 rev. 1/2007

Centennial Park "Hardscape" Begins to Appear. After long preparation of the ground for Highland Park's Centennial Park, the elements of "hardscape" are beginning to appear within the "landscape." These wooden forms will help create the steps of the new park, while an adjacent ramp will zig-zag down the same slope to provide universal access and easy strolling. This park, conceived during the 2005 centennial year of the incorporation of Highland Park, NJ, will become the visual center of attention for visitors approaching from the Raritan River (Route 27) bridge out of New Brunswick. Not seen in this photo is the last major element of the ground work, a broad hollow at the tip of the park that will catch storm runoff in a small but naturalistic wetland "rain garden." When planting is completed in spring 2007, Highland Park will have an attractive pocket park with a fair amountof native species right at the busiest urban intersection in town and across the street from the larger natural area at the new Eugene Young Environmental Center. rev. 1/2007.