Upcoming Presentations on Ecology & History of the Wawayanda Creek

Residents of Warwick and the surrounding area are invited to learn about the ecology, wildlife, and history of the Wawayanda Creek and its watershed at two upcoming presentations being sponsored by the Town. On Wednesday, August 22, a longer program will be offered at the Albert Wisner Library at 6:30 pm, and this is being co-sponsored by the Library.  These presentations are open to the public at no charge as part of an educational program about the heritage and value of the Wawayanda Creek watershed, which is one of the major drainage basins in the Town of Warwick. 

The Wawayanda Creek begins at headwaters areas at higher elevations in Warwick, Chester and northern New Jersey.  In Warwick, Wickham Lake is near the northern edge of this watershed and flows to the Creek.  After flowing downstream east of Kings Highway, the Wawayanda Creek runs through the heart of the Village and then continues past the High School and Middle School into southwestern Warwick.  This stream has been a major resource and a key part of the landscape for residents and businesses in Warwick for hundreds of years.  These educational presentations will provide an overview of what we know about water quality, history in the watershed including Native American and early colonial settlement patterns and economic activity, the ecology of the area, and highlight opportunities for public access, recreation, and other benefits of the Creek.  The former Mid-Orange Correctional Facility site is located in this watershed and the redevelopment of this site provides one major opportunity for exploring new public access areas on and near the Creek.  This education project will highlight the value of these resources for the Town and their potential for the future, and it is designed to engage residents, business leaders and others in dialogue about a beginning a community-based initiative to develop of a strategy for managing and enhancing the Wawayanda Creek watershed over time.

On August 22 at the Albert Wisner Library, Restaino and Gruber will be joined by Town Historian Dr. Richard Hull, who will talk about how people have used the Creek and the surrounding landscape in the past and what this can teach us about a sustainable approach for future management of this watershed.  Information about this program will be posted at  http://www.albertwisnerlibrary.org/

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation provided funding for this project from the Environmental Protection Fund through the Hudson River Estuary Program, in partnership with the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission.  Educational information about protecting water quality, wildlife and related topics is available at the Estuary Program’s website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/4920.html