Project Purpose: The purpose of this project is to reduce impacts of localized flooding and improve water quality in the Parvin Tarkiln Watershed in the City of Vineland. ANJEC secured primary funding for this project in 2022 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Grant #75494, but project costs have increased because of inflation. ANJEC’s Parvin Tarkiln Watershed restoration project includes the strategic use of green infrastructure to manage previously untreated stormwater runoff, reducing nutrient and sediment loadings in the Parvin Tarkiln watershed, thereby protecting and improving water quality. One of the proposed practices is to install six (6) enhanced stormwater management tree pits along a municipal parking lot in Vineland City at a cost of $20,000 each. Enhanced engineered tree pits capture and filter stormwater runoff before it enters local waterways improving the health of urban and suburban waterways and to takes pressure off existing storm sewer systems. ANJEC is requesting funding from CWRP to cover the cost of one tree pit installation along with two interpretive signs– one sign describing the function of enhanced tree pits and one describing the function of rain gardens to be installed at the recently constructed Vineland Historical Society.

Brief Description: Communities composed of a significant portion of residents who identify as minority, are classified as low-income, or speak English as a second language often suffer from an increased exposure to pollution, flooding, and other environmental impacts that negatively affect their health and quality of life. New Jersey’s Environmental Justice Law developed a screening tool to identify communities with potential increased pollution as compared to neighboring communities. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) has mapped these overburdened communities (OBC) identified by census tracks. Approximately half of the population in the City of Vineland live in census tracks identified as an OBC according to the NJDEP. Sixty-two percent of the population of Vineland are minority and 42.4 percent are low-income. Vineland is one of the largest OBCs in South Jersey.

ANJEC, in cooperation with project partners, developed a comprehensive approach to reducing the impacts of localized flooding in portions of Vineland known as the Parvin Tarkiln Watershed. ANJEC secured funding support from the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) that builds upon previously installed green infrastructure to further reduce impacts of localized flooding and to improve water quality. The co-benefits of the work also include beautification of Vineland, reduction of heat island effect in the summer, improved quality of life, and economic regeneration as Vineland experiences a planned resurgence in accordance with the City’s Neighborhood Preservation Program.

ANJEC’s Parvin Tarkiln restoration project includes a pollinator garden and forested wetlands restoration at the Chamber of Commerce; a bio-retention rain garden at the Vineland Historical Society, six tree pits along the Elmer Street parking lots, and two
bio-retention rain gardens at two schools. As part of the school projects, we involve the students in an educational experience by having them help in the planting of the rain gardens and learning about green infrastructure and the critical role they play in protecting water quality.

We respectfully request supplemental funding from NJCWRP to assist with implementing this project. Rising inflation has increased project costs since the ANJEC submitted the NFWF proposal for this project in 2021. NJCWRP funds will be used to install one of the proposed tree pits that will be strategically located along a municipal parking lot on Elmer Street between 7th and 6th street.

Flooding is known to occur near the intersection of 7th and Elmer. These tree pits will work in cooperation with the rain garden ANJEC installed (October 2023) on 7th street at the Vineland Historical Society and will help manage stormwater runoff and alleviate flooding at this intersection. See map below.