Working for Smart Growth:
More Livable Places and Open Spaces

 

Water Infrastructure for Thriving Communities

Every resident and business in New Jersey deserves safe drinking water, a healthy home, clean rivers, and flood-free neighborhoods.

New Jersey Future’s growing water and health team is working to transform the state’s systems for drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, and lead remediation from the inside out. We are changing state policy, assisting practitioners, facilitating collaboratives, and enlisting community voices in advocacy. To connect with us, please contact New Jersey Future Policy Director Diane Schrauth  (dschrauthatnjfuturedotorg)   or any of the program staff noted below.

Jersey Water Works

Jersey Water Works (JWW) is an award-winning 600-member collaborative working to transform New Jersey’s inadequate water infrastructure by investing in sustainable, cost-effective solutions that provide communities with clean water and waterways; healthier, safer neighborhoods; local jobs; flood and climate resilience; and economic growth. JWW strives to better understand how to overcome the structural and systemic biases that impact water infrastructure policy decisions, and to support ongoing efforts by communities of color and low-income communities to influence water policy.

  • Members of JWW committees work across sectors to advance innovative solutions like the New Jersey Water Risk and Equity Map. Shared resources highlight best practices and the latest news to ensure that decision-makers, experts, and water consumers are up-to-date on current initiatives. Each year, hundreds of members and friends gather for a summer membership meeting and the Jersey Water Works annual conference. New Jersey Future provides backbone staff support to the collaborative and serves on its Steering Committee. Contact Program Manager Paula Figueroa-Vega  (pfigueroaatnjfuturedotorg)   or Program Coordinator Andrea Sapal  (asapalatnjfuturedotorg)   and click here to join the collaborative!
  • JWW’s Lead in Drinking Water Task Force is working to virtually eliminate lead in drinking water in 10 years to protect children’s health. In October 2019, the task force issued a report, Lead in Drinking Water: A Permanent Solution for New Jersey, that outlined 19 actions New Jersey could take. During 2021, several key pieces of state legislation were enacted, including the nation’s most aggressive requirements for lead service line replacement. In November 2021, the task force issued 10 solutions for child care facilities. In 2022, the task force is working to implement its recommendations by convening a new peer-sharing group, crafting practical policy and implementation solutions, and providing policy support to Lead-Free NJ. Contact Senior Policy Advisor Gary Brune  (gbruneatnjfuturedotorg)   for more information.
  • JWW launched Jersey WaterCheck in March 2021, a user-friendly dashboard that features data about the state’s drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater systems. The dashboard has information on approximately 542 drinking water and wastewater systems along with metrics for New Jersey’s 563 municipalities. It connects New Jerseyans to New Jersey water systems and provides the knowledge we need to improve New Jersey’s water infrastructure for individuals, communities, utilities, and our state’s leaders. Contact Program Manager Jyoti Venketraman  (jvenketramanatnjfuturedotorg)   for more information.

Mainstreaming Green Infrastructure

Mainstreaming Green Infrastructure aims to prevent flooding and water pollution across New Jersey by promoting the use of green stormwater infrastructure practices. Implementing green infrastructure will mitigate the increased rainfall from climate change, increase tree canopy in urban areas to reduce the heat island effect, and reduce flood risk. In these ways, green infrastructure will make New Jersey a more equitable and resilient state. Our work includes working with state agencies to update and improve rules, manuals, standards and programs; partnering with developers on green infrastructure policies and implementation; and connecting with municipalities to understand local challenges and develop solutions. Our resources and projects include:

  • Developer’s Green Infrastructure Guide is a detailed resource, produced in collaboration with the New Jersey Builders Association, to facilitate the inclusion of green infrastructure in private-sector developments.
  • The Trenton Green Team is a community-based initiative that coordinates environmental advocacy, green infrastructure demonstration projects, and other efforts in Trenton.

Contact Program Manager Lindsey Sigmund  (lsigmundatnjfuturedotorg)   for more information.

Sewage-Free Streets and Rivers

New Jersey Future coordinates Sewage-Free Streets and Rivers, an action-oriented campaign in communities with combined sewer systems to empower local organizations to engage residents and small business owners to shape the solutions that will be adopted through the implementation of the combined sewer overflow Long Term Control Plans. For more information or to join the Sewage-Free Streets and Rivers campaign, please contact Community Organizer and Policy Advocate Suzanne Aptman  (saptmanatnjfuturedotorg)  .

Lead-Free NJ

The Lead-Free NJ collaborative unites community organizations, community members, and policy advocacy organizations to ensure that New Jersey’s children are free from lead poisoning and that our environment is lead-safe by advocating for changes to state and local policy. It recognizes the importance of representation in every aspect of Lead-Free NJ—from membership to leadership.

The collaborative focuses on legacy lead hazards in low-income communities and/or communities of color, while also creating the conditions for children to be free from lead poisoning statewide. Contact Program Manager Heather Sorge  (hsorgeatnjfuturedotorg)   for more information.

Stormwater Utilities

New Jersey Future works with the Flood Defense New Jersey coalition to support New Jersey localities to establish stormwater utilities as an equitable way to fund the water infrastructure necessary to provide flood protection and reduce water pollution. We do this through direct technical assistance, education, and state-level advocacy for financial support to communities. Our resources include the web-based Stormwater Utilities Resource Center, the NJ Stormwater Utilities Peer Learning Exchange, and limited engagement/pro bono consultants. 

For more information or to join the NJ Stormwater Utilities Learning Exchange, please contact Program Manager Lindsey Sigmund  (lsigmundatnjfuturedotorg)   for more information.

 

Recent Reports:

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New Jersey Future Blog
Municipal Leaders Claim Public Engagement is Largest Asset to Lead Replacement Efforts
June 24, 2024 by New Jersey Future staff

“We collectively work towards a future where every resident in New Jersey has access to clean, safe, and lead-free drinking water by fostering collaboration and sharing knowledge through innovation,” declared Richard Calbi, Director of Ridgewood Water, as he opened the lead service line replacement session at the 2024 Planning and Redevelopment Conference.

What You Read 2023 – A Message from the Editor
January 12, 2024 by Sneha Patel

2023 was a year full of many unpredictable environmental events ranging from major rainfall to extreme heat to a collapsed highway overpass. Our daily newsletter “What We’re Reading” brings our readers the most up-to-date articles covering our New Jersey Future issue areas and major developments in the Garden State.

Sustainable Water Management: Program Rundown of Municipal Options
December 18, 2023 by Michael Atkins

The future of New Jersey’s water relies on commitment to equitable decision-making to solve legacy water infrastructure issues like lead service line replacement, combined sewer overflows, coastal and riverine flooding, and upgrading water infrastructure. By working together to address the growing needs of our water systems, we can properly mitigate the stress they will face with growing and more frequent storms fueled by climate change, and ensure that natural and tap waters are free from contaminants to support healthy and resilient communities across the state.

Green Infrastructure in the Garden State: Stormwater Research in the Delaware River Watershed
September 20, 2023 by Brooke Schwartzman

In 2020, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) updated the Stormwater Management Rules, which now require that municipalities incorporate green infrastructure into major development projects. In many areas of the state, this relatively new policy change has meant a significant departure from the way that stormwater management was approached previously.

Planning for Tomorrow, Not Today
July 18, 2023 by Zeke Weston

“It doesn’t matter if we make every vehicle electric, and it doesn’t matter if we turn of all power plants; climate change will still get worse,” exclaimed Shawn LaTourette, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), during the 2023 Planning and Redevelopment Conference plenary, The State of Planning and Redevelopment in New Jersey, co-sponsored by New Jersey Future and the NJ Chapter of the American Planning Association.

Articles and Stories
Ripple Effects

This report and related case studies summarize the state of urban water infrastructure in New Jersey and how it affects residents and businesses. May 2014.

Communicating Value to Consumers: Strategies for Water and Sewer Utilities

A one-hour webinar focused on consumer-facing communications strategies for water and sewer utilities. Thursday, May 14, 2015.

Revitalizing an Essential Urban Public Space

2015 Smart Growth Awards: Reactivation of a neglected landmark park in downtown Newark as a thriving public space.

Making a Successful Street ‘Complete’

2015 Smart Growth Awards: Plan for re-engineering 16 blocks of Washington Street in Hoboken to improve safety and comfort for cyclists and pedestrians

Grassroots Collaboration on Green Infrastructure

2015 Smart Growth Awards: Partnership of community organizations working to construct green and grey infrastructure to alleviate flooding in the city of Camden.

See all New Jersey Future Blog posts and articles in this category »
 

Reports, Presentations and Testimony

© New Jersey Future, 16 W. Lafayette St. • Trenton, NJ 08608 • Phone: 609-393-0008 • Fax: 609-360-8478

Ingrid Reed For Our Future Fund

 

Our New Jersey Future board of trustees, our staff, and our community, honors Ingrid’s legacy with the Ingrid Reed For our Future Fund, supporting education and training for future Smart Growth leaders with a particular focus on diversifying the field.

 

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