The future health of Barnegat Bay, an ecological gem of New Jersey, will be the focus of a series of public stakeholder meetings using science to develop a comprehensive list of actions to be taken to protect the environmentally important region.
The NJ Department of Environmental Protection, along with a large and diverse community of bay advocates, including residents, recreational fishermen, scientists, businesses and elected officials, have been working independently and together to identify the degree of impacts on the bay and come up with solutions.
The first meeting was on May 5 at Ocean County Community College in Toms River and included presentations by the DEP, Barnegat Bay Partnership, Rutgers University, U.S. Geological Survey and the Exelon Corporation.
Future stakeholder sessions are planned for May 24 and June 14. Additional meetings may be scheduled as needed.
The May 24th session will focus on developing a comprehensive list of actions previously taken to protect or improve the bay. The June 14th meeting will be a brainstorming session to develop a priority list of research and implementation strategies to serve as a basis for future bay protection and improvement measures.
For more information, visit
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/newsrel/2010/10_0034.htm on the DEP website.
