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| Testing river water |
It’s been a month since Public Works removed most of the vegetation from the riverbank at Riverfront Park. Yesterday I went there to help volunteers test our river water for pollutants and other water health factors. Remember, this river provides our drinking water.
The results: Nitrate levels (caused by runoff that contains fertilizer) were slightly better than on Earth Day. PH levels were a tad on the alkaline side but not far from optimum (changes in pH can promote the growth of nasty invasive vegetation in the river). The bad news is that phosphate levels were worse (caused by runoff containing waste—for instance, from the goose droppings along the bank, the many dogs people bring to the park to relieve themselves, and all the backyards uphill that contain dog poop, etc.)
If you read my first blog on the riverbank about 3 weeks ago, you’ll remember how important the riparian zone (riverbank) vegetation is for filtering pollutants like phosphates, to keep them out of our drinking water.
The good news is that some of the vegetation is beginning to grow back, especially where the blue sediment barrier is, because the barrier discourages people from stepping over it and trampling the plants. (The photo shows mainly broadleaf plantain—an introduced species that’s been in North America long enough to be considered native.) If left alone, the vegetation will come back on its own, though replacing some of the more recent invasive species with native shrubs and flowers is best.
However, where there’s no barrier, little growth is taking place and the soil is quickly eroding around the tree roots.
At the end of the parking lot, where the lot is closest to the water, erosion is happening so fast that no vegetation at all is visible and almost all the top soil is gone. What’s underneath is what looks like old construction fill—cement blocks, cement dust in the soil, etc. Nothing will grow there. Meanwhile, the river keeps getting closer to the asphalt.
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| Where the river is closest to the lot |
When I tried to ask some of our council folks what the plans are for Riverfront Park, they directed me to the Norristown.org. It took me a while but I found the
plan at this link.
What the plan shows is no riparian zone at all for the area in question (which goes against US, PA and Montgomery County guidelines/ regulations for riparian zones). The bank appears to be all paved (it's described as "stone protection/stone seating/bank fishing"), with large boulders along the water’s edge. Less trees than we have now. Nothing to filter pollution, nothing to prevent erosion from behind or during floods, nothing to help slow flood waters, no habitat for wildlife (which includes fish—who get much of their shelter and food from overhanging trees and nutrients that wash into the river from vegetation on land or from whatever lives in the muddy shallows (which will be covered with boulders)). The entire natural eco-system in this area would be completely destroyed. More pollution in the river, leading not only to more difficulty cleaning our drinking water, but to the growth of more invasive weeds in the river, preventing boating.
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| Do we prefer bottle caps instead of plants? |
Even if all that wasn’t a problem, think about the added heat that less trees/vegetation and more stone would bring to the park. Honestly, there’s too much paving there on a hot summer day now as it is, let alone add more. We’re supposed to be a community that cares about the environment. Riverfront Park could be a natural area showcase for our town, a wonderful place to teach our kids the science of nature and ecology. And a great place to fish if we don’t mess with current fish habitats. And a cool, breezy place to picnic. And a healthy river for boating.
This plan is dated 2011. I don’t know of any environmental study done since then in relation to this plan. One council person said there were town halls about it last fall. I checked all the calendars, including Norristown.org and the Municipality’s Facebook events. Nope, no town halls about Riverfront Park at all.
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| Litter and trash in the park continues |
Some of our council reps have spoken to me and seem open to discussing environmental concerns about Riverfront Park. From the rest of Municipal Hall, I’ve only heard repeated claims that Public Works “cleaned up” the riverfront last month. Apparently healthy vegetation is trash to them (while real trash is still left lying around).
Please contact your council person and ask that a healthy NATURAL environment be restored to the riverbank and incorporated into the Riverfront Park Plan, for the good of the whole community.
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