A two-acre site between Park and Bradford avenues was converted from a severely degraded marsh into a haven for wildlife and a natural water filter. First, dense common reeds (Phragmites australis) as well as junk that included an abandoned shed and car, steel drums, and automobile parts were removed. Then thousands of native plants representing more than two dozen species were installed, as were shrubs and trees that
included dogwood, ash, maple, oak and sycamore. Roosts for herons and swales for breeding turtles were installed, as was a subsurface structure in the stream channel to reduce stream bank erosion. The plants provide habitat for fish and wildlife and help filter out pollutants and excess nutrients before they enter adjacent Beaver Swamp Brook and downstream Long Island Sound.
To View The Site: The site is between Bradford Avenue and Park Avenue along Beaver Swamp Brook in the Town/Village of Harrison.