Environmental Commission

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Important Messages from our Environmental Commission

Residents: As you make your landscaping and construction plans for the spring and summer, please remember that a permit is required before cutting down any tree, alive or dead. The tree removal permit is free. Details available on the Borough website, at watchungnj.gov under Engineering, or by calling the Engineering Dept. at Borough Hall, 908-756-0091.

STATEWIDE BAN ON SINGLE-USE BAGS STARTS MAY 4, 2022

Single-use plastic carryout bags have been banned as of May 2022 in all stores and food service businesses. Single-use paper carryout bags have also been banned in grocery stores larger than 2500 square feet. The ban is designed to reduce pollution and protect NJ's environment and economy for future generations. Remember to bring reusable shopping bags with you to the grocery store and everywhere you go to shop. For further details, click here and let's BAG UP, WATCHUNG!

Trees

Watchung is losing so many trees to invasive insects, storms, and disease. Here is a list of the native trees and shrubs that are recommended as replacements for all the ash and other trees that are being lost.

If you are removing tree(s)	Then complete and submit
If you are going to remove tree(s) without land disturbance	Tree removal application for permit with "no land disurbance" form
If you are going to remove tree(s) with land disturbance	Tree removal application for permit with "with land disurbance" form
If you are going to remove dead, diseased, dying or hazardous tree(s) without land disturbance	Dead, Diseased, Dying or Hazardous Tree Only Tree Removal Permit Application
If you are going to remove dead, diseased, dying or hazardous tree(s) with land disturbance	Tree removal application for permit with "with land disurbance" form

Watchung Special RECYCLING Information:

The Environmental Commission would like residents to know that the plastic bottle cap recycling program at the library is still suspended due to Covid. The Commission suggests that residents continue to collect their caps at home and hold on to them until the program resumes.

The Trex plastic bag and film recycling program is also still suspended. Residents are encouraged to recycle their plastic bags at Shop Rite in Stirling, where there are plastic bag recycling bins near all the entrances to the store.

Bear Sightings

Please be advised that there have been bear sightings in Watchung. Please secure all garbage containers and do not try to approach or feed the bears. For more bear information, please click here.

If you see a Spotted Lanternfly, help us Stomp it Out!

If possible crush it first, and then report it to NJ Dept of Agriculture.

Report a sighting using the reporting tool or email [email protected].

Check out this info!

Forest Health Program in New Jersey

The New Jersey Forest Service (NJFS) surveys and monitors New Jersey's forests both from the ground and the air for various forest health threats. While most insects and diseases are part of the natural ecosystem, the NJFS is mainly concerned with forest health threats that are invasive, spread quickly, or can have the ability to affect otherwise healthy trees. Often the pests and diseases of concern are non-native and introduced to our forests accidentally. To learn about pests that have the potential to cause tree mortality, click here.