Hillsdale Environmental Commission

Concerning

Concerning news about our tap water: Bergen County ranks as the 4th highest on list of places in the U.S. with high levels of toxic PFAS chemicals in our tap water. For the full article, see
https://www.ewg.org/research/national-pfas-testing

A fellow Hillsdale resident, who lives on Plymouth Road, asked that we share this with everyone in the community.
Attention Beech Tree Owners:
If you own beech trees and notice their leaves are sparse, they probably have a beech tree fungus that is spreading throughout the area. We have four beautiful established beech trees in our yard and two are being affected. We are having all four treated.

If your trees are not treated, your tree/trees will die. You can call a certified tree arborist and they will fertilize the trees in order to reduce the stress and hopefully save the tree if it is not too far gone.

Photo by Misky on Unsplash

EC members and representatives from groups ranging from the Boy Scouts to the Sustainable Bergen Hub came out to help residents of Hillsdale and neighboring towns usher in a cleaner, more sustainable 2023. Meeting on Sunday, Jan 8th in Hillsdale’s west parking lot next to Wendy’s, the EC team welcomed environmentally friendly residents who dropped off their styrofoam offerings to be loaded onto a big U-Haul. Instead of going to pollute landfills, the non-degrading materials will be recycled and given new life and purpose. Thanks to all who lent a hand!

The gift-giving season is upon us. Once family and friends have unwrapped the last one you’ll likely have piles of packaging materials to discard. Give Mother Earth a gift by not throwing out the styrofoam to litter the landfills. Recycle instead! Save the date of Jan 8, and help save the Earth.

Bergen County
Styrofoam Collection Drive
Sunday, January 8, 2023
Rain/Snow January 15, 2023 (same time)
11:00am-1:00pm OR till truck is full

First 30 minutes for Hillsdale residents ONLY
Last 1.5 hours open to all Bergen County residents
441 Hillsdale Avenue, Hillsdale, NJ
(Town West parking lot next to Wendy’s)
Hosted by Hillsdale Environmental Commission

Here are five of the most harmful invasive insects that have wreaked havoc in New Jersey.https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2021/03/22/invasive-species-5-insects-decimating-nj-environment/4745231001/

Have you identified a species of plant or animal on your property or elsewhere in Hillsdale that is not currently listed in the Hillsdale Environmental Resource Inventory? If so, we invite you to snap a picture and send it along with a completed “Form H.5 Hillsdale Wildlife/Vegetation Inventory [Data Input Report],” so that we can recognize that you spotted this, and can update our listing. Thank you in advance for your contributions!

In case you were wondering…

What exactly is an Environmental Resource Inventory? What does it contain? What can it be used for? Find out the answers to these and other questions here.

Help prepare pollinator gardens for fall plantings

Did you know that Hillsdale has trees that date back 150+ years to Civil War days? That Hillsdale residents co-habit with wildlife such as mink and bald eagles? That Hillsdale has no publicly accessible electric vehicle charge stations, and that all municipal buildings and vehicles rely solely on traditional fuel sources instead of renewable sources of energy like solar or geothermal?

These are just some of the many interesting facts presented in the report titled “An Environmental Resource Inventory of the Borough of Hillsdale, New Jersey” (ERI) prepared by the Hillsdale Environmental Commission (EC). To read the entire report, go to the “Reports” tab above or click here.