Watchung Mountains - Conservation

Conservation

In the mid-twentieth century, the ability of the Watchungs to hold back the spread of urbanization was greatly reduced with the development of the interstate highway system. Three interstate highways, I-80, I-280, and I-78, were sliced through the Watchungs, allowing suburbia to invade its inner valleys and slopes. Near the end of the century, I-287, a great semi-circular beltway enclosed the Watchungs within the bulge of suburbia radiating out from New York City. Many pathways of safe passage through the mountains, retained from the time of the Lenapes, were severed and blocked by the highways.

Today, along the summits of the Watchungs, talus slope environs as well as globally rare trap rock glade/outcrop communities and their unique species have become threatened by development. As a response, efforts to conserve the unique landscapes of the Watchungs have been undertaken. The largest of the conservation efforts so far is High Mountain Park Preserve, which at 1,153.7 acres (4.669 km2) sets aside one of the largest tracts of wilderness in the New Jersey Piedmont. The park is known to contain at least one globally imperiled plant, Torrey's mountain mint (Pycnanthemum torrei), as well as three other plants endangered within New Jersey.

Other large areas of preserved land lie within the valleys of the Watchungs. The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, retained within the embrace of Third Watchung Mountain, now consists of 7,600 acres (31 km2) or almost 12 square miles (30.4 km²) of varied habitats. The refuge was created through the efforts and donations of a small group of local residents in 1959, the Jersey Jetport Site Association, and a Great Swamp Committee later formed within the North American Wildlife Foundation. It is championed by many organizations among the contemporary communities adjacent to the refuge. The Great Swamp, as well as other swamps retained by the Watchungs, including Great Piece Meadows, constitute the remains of Glacial Lake Passaic. The lake existed during the last ice age, eventually draining as a glacier in the northern Watchungs receded and allowed the lake's water to empty out via a gap in the ridges of First and Second Watchung Mountain currently occupied by the Passaic River.

General awareness of the history and natural environment of Watchungs has been increased through efforts such as the construction and designation of the Lenape Trail. The trail traverses rugged sections of the mountains while at the same time connecting various historical sites pertinent to the history of New Jersey.