Green Brook Flood Control Project

Green Brook Flood Control is a flood control project in Somerset County in central New Jersey first proposed in the early 1970s in the wake of two major flooding events: a 1971 flood event and a major flood in August 1973, which ravaged the Green Brook and Raritan River basins with flooding, causing millions in property damage and several deaths in central New Jersey.

The worst flooding in the Green Brook basin occurs in Bound Brook, which partially lies on a natural flood plain of the Raritan River at the junction of the Green Brook and Raritan River.

To address this flooding problem, the United States Army Corps of Engineers has proposed the Green Brook Sub Basin Flood Control Project, which entails numerous flood walls, levees, channel diversions, widening projects and retention basins throughout the Green Brook basin.

Floodings during the project

The Green Brook Flood Control project has languished for decades due to a lack of federal funding. Hurricane Floyd in 1999 caused yet more property damage and deaths in the Green Brook basin, especially in Bound Brook, and reinvigorated the flood control project. As of 2006, two levees have been built on the western and eastern sides of Bound Brook. However, an important levee (R2) on the southwestern side of Bound Brook, which would prevent the Raritan River from flooding the downtown and nearby residential areas, has not been built, but is expected to be completed by the beginning of 2010.

The April Nor'easter of 2007 flooded Bound Brook with the second highest crest ever recorded in the area, as the envisioned flood protection systems were not yet fully in place. However, the April 2007 flooding did reinvigorate efforts to complete the flood levee protection system around Bound Brook, to protect it from future flooding. As of May 2007, with approximately $10 million per year of funding anticipated in coming years, it appears that sufficient federal funding will be available to complete the Raritan River flood levee system around Bound Brook by the end of the current decade.

Current Status

The Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) are moving forward with two contracts for the Green Brook Flood Control Project, both of which are located in Bound Brook:

• 1. Talmadge Avenue Bridge Replacement (Will Allow Building of the R2 Levee Along Raritan River in Bound Brook) – The contract for the Talmadge Avenue Bridge Replacement was awarded on May 25, 2007 to Rencor Contracting of Somerville at a cost of $14 million. As of May 2008 traffic over the bridge has been narrowed to two lanes, and the traffic light at the east end of the bridge has been disabled. As of September 2008, the relocation of utilities has been completed and the temporary bridge design has also been completed. A temporary bridge will be erected in the Fall of 2008, which will allow for the replacement bridge project to proceed. The Apollo Glass property adjacent to the bridge has been acquired for the diversion of Talmadage Avenue through the Apollo Glass property to provide access to the temporary bridge during the construction of the new bridge starting in the fall of 2008. The work will be performed in phases, beginning with utility re-locations, interior drainage reroutes, detention basins, and demolition of some structures. The bridge replacement must be completed prior to the installment of the Raritan River Flood Levee System (R2 Levee) around Bound Brook. The bridge replacement project will be completed in 2009.
• 2. R2 Levee System – Construction bids for the R2 Levee System, including the Raritan River levee, flood wall and pump station were opened on September 4, 2008, and work is expected to commence in the Fall of 2008. According to the Green Brook Flood Control Commission May 2008 meeting notes, work on the R2 Levee System will be completed 18 months thereafter, or approximately the beginning of 2010. The R2 Levee System will start in the southwestern part of Bound Brook on the south side of the new Talmadge Avenue Bridge, and briefly follow the Middle Brook's east bank, then loop around the southern side of Bound Brook along Raritan River's north bank, where the Raritan River creates the southern boundary of the borough, to an area slightly west of the Bound Brook train station. The R2 Levee System is designed to provide Bound Brook with protection from a 150-year flood level. It will be built in conjunction with the construction of the raised Talmage Avenue Bridge. Permits for the R2 Levee System have been submitted to the state of New Jersey and the design for the levee is progressing. Design of the R2 Levee System has been reported as 100% complete as of March 2008. Design of flood control gates where the levee will cross the railroad tracks south of the Talmage Avenue Bridge and just south of the roundabout on Main Street (where the road leads under the railroad tracks and onto Queens Bridge) is ongoing, and is reported as 90% complete as of March 2008. The contract for the levee is expected to be awarded in 2008.

To improve water flow through Bound Brook, the former Conrail bridge over the Raritan River and its associated railroad embankment that were located East of Bound Brook were removed during 2007. The bridge and embankment, when they were in place, acted to block the river flow through the Bound Brook area. To build the main Bound Brook R2 levee, the bridge and embankment needed to be removed.

Finderne Farm is a wetlands project upstream of Bound Brook that is tied into the Green Brook Flood Control project. It is over 90% complete and re-mobilization in the spring of 2007 will occur with re-planting/grading starting in March 2007. When completed, Finderne Farm will serve as a Somerset County park with trails through wetlands and ballfields. More importantly, Finderne Farm will serve as an important wetland that will help to reduce flooding in the Raritan River valley.

As of early 2007, $430 Million in funding is estimated to be necessary to complete the Green Brook Flood Control project.

References

External links

• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Green Brook Sub Basin Page - Army Corps Green Brook Flood Control Project Website
• Green Brook Flood Control Commission - Official Project Website
• History of The Green Brook Flood Control Project
• Detailed Green Brook Flood Control Project Update U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Meeting With Local Officials - September 6, 2006
• Officials plead for further flood control funds $400 Million Needed to Complete Project, $40 Million to Fully Protect Bound Brook - April 19, 2006
• Lawmakers work to keep flood-control funds from drying up - January 11, 2006
• House panel approves $5 million for Green Brook Flood Control Project - May 18, 2005

River Gauge

• Raritan River Gauge, Bound Brook, New Jersey - Observation gauge approximately one-half mile west (upstream) of Bound Brook, NJ, just below Calco Dam. Main Street in Bound Brook floods when the river reaches a 30 foot stage.