Regional Flooding Threatens Pascack Valley: The Silent Loss of Irreplaceable Trees and Stream Banks

photo courtesy of Westwood Mayor Ray Arroyo

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Four major rainstorms in just six weeks have shattered a two-year drought across Northern New Jersey, forcing Pascack Valley residents to contend with recurring floodwaters once again. While the immediate focus remains on home protection, municipal leaders are warning of a deeper ecological crisis: 50 years of accumulated waterway neglect that is actively destroying the region’s irreplaceable mature trees, eroding stream banks, and crippling natural drainage.

The Ecological Cost: Why Flooding Kills Mature Trees

Severe regional flooding and unmaintained stream banks create a destructive cycle that threatens mature tree canopies across Bergen County:

• Erosion & Root Loss: Unchecked torrents scour stream banks, washing away essential topsoil and exposing tree roots. Over time, massive, irreplaceable trees collapse directly into the waterways.

• Logjams and Severe Blockages: Fallen trees and accumulated debris form heavy logjams that impede natural water flow, shallowing depth and pushing floodwaters even further into residential neighborhoods.

• Silt Accumulation: Debris buildup reduces the carrying capacity of local streams, causing prolonged standing water that suffocates tree roots and weakens forest health.

A $8.9 Million Regional Plan to Restore Pascack Waterways

Recognizing that no single municipality or homeowner can fix a regional drainage basin alone, Westwood Mayor Ray Arroyo hosted a high-level meeting with Rep. Josh Gottheimer alongside Mayors Calamari, Sheinfield, Bromberg, Ghassali, and Misciagna.

Supported unanimously by the bipartisan Pascack Valley Mayors Association (PVMA), local leaders are seeking $8.9 million in federal grant funding to implement Boswell Engineering’s comprehensive watershed restoration plan.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                        Key Pillars of the Restoration Plan                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 1. De-Snagging & De-Shoaling: Clearing decades of logjams, silt, and clogged debris|
| 2. Stream-Bank Restoration: Rebuilding eroded banks to protect mature tree roots   |
| 3. Multi-Town Shared Maintenance: Establishing joint long-term waterway upkeep   |
| 4. Federal & State Funding Push: Target WRDA, Community PROJECT, & A-2273 Grants   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

A Regional Problem Demands a Shared Solution

Mayor Arroyo highlighted the absurdity of treating shared waterways like divided private properties, comparing it to asking individual homeowners to pave half a street along a town border. Without coordinated multi-town maintenance, Pascack Valley’s natural drainage basin will remain a bottlenecked hazard.

With federal advocacy from Congressman Gottheimer and state support via Assembly Bill A-2273, mayors are pushing for regional collaboration to protect both property lines and irreplaceable environmental assets for generations to come.

Join the new Saddle River Valley, Ramapo and Pascack Valley Communities Facebook group
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