Over the past two centuries, Westchester County’s natural resources, like streams, wetlands and forests, have been degraded or destroyed by human activities, especially from development and pollution. The County of Westchester has been reversing some of this damage by constructing practical and actual solutions to improving water quality and wildlife habitat around the county. These many “demonstration” projects show the way for others to also make the streams and rivers, ponds and lakes, wetlands and forests of Westchester more clean, functional and enjoyable for residents and visitors alike.

The Westchester County Department of Planning and Westchester County Soil and Water Conservation District initiated the County’s water resources improvement and management program in 1998, when the first of more than three dozen water resources projects was turned from blueprints to “construction.”  A lot was learned from the first stream and wetland restoration projects, and now the program addresses other vitally important considerations, such as general storm water management and flood control, to address both the quality and quantity of storm water runoff. Some 36 natural resources restoration and storm water management projects have been completed or are being planned, designed or constructed. As more resources are restored, water quality will continue to improve and a more diverse community of plants and animals will be established.

The Westchester County Department of Planning and Soil and Water Conservation District wish to thank the following for their assistance to this program:

• U.S. Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey
• USDA - Natural Resources Conservation Service
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of State
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• New York State Attorney General’s Office

View A Guide to Aquatic Buffers to learn more about the benefits of riparian and wetland buffers. 

For more information contact Matt Castro, District Manager/Principal Environmental Planner, at (914) 995-4423 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Dickerman’s Pond sits on the Sheldrake River just north of Sheldrake Lake (Larchmont Reservoir) in the City of New Rochelle.  It is encircled by Pine Brook Boulevard and Quaker Ridge Road.  The “pond” was formed by a small dam across the Sheldrake River, causing the river to back up behind it in a bowl-shaped parcel of land.  The surrounding rim of the bowl consists of moderate to steep, wooded slopes.  Over the years, as the Sheldrake River cascaded turbulently down into the pond, sediment and leaves settled out of the calmer river waters behind the dam.  The sediment and leaves eventually filled the pond, allowing room for only the river channel itself.  Finally, invasive plants, some of which are not native to North America, dominated the deposits of sediment and leaves.  These plants included Japanese knotweed and common reeds (i.e., Phragmites sp.).  In addition to losing its functional value, the “pond” became an eyesore.

Construction on this pond habitat restoration project began in February 2008.  Funded by a state Clean Water/Clean Air Bond Act grant from the Department of State, as well as matching funds from the County of Westchester, City of New Rochelle and Town of Mamaroneck, the project is primarily aimed at restoring the ecological and water quality protection benefits once provided by the pond.  The project may also result in a modest amount of additional water storage behind the dam during significant storms, thereby providing an ancillary flood control benefit.

The project included the removal of exotic and/or invasive plants and relocation of accumulated sediment and leaves to other parts of the “pond” footprint and banks of the “pond” to create a diverse aquatic ecosystem.  This included a new deep water pool and wetland fringe around the pool and alongside the Sheldrake River.  The surrounding woodland was also enhanced  with native shrubs and trees.  The ends of two stormwater pipes draining into the pond werestabilized with stone-lined pads to prevent future erosion and scouring.

The sediment relocation and other re-contouring and stabilization efforts was completed in the spring 2008.  Exotic and/or invasive plants were  removed in the summer and the site was permanently re-vegetated with approximately 16,000 plants in fall 2008.

To View The Site: The site cannot be easily or safely accessed by pedestrians.  However, it is visible to motorists driving through the junction of Pine Brook Boulevard and Quaker Ridge Road in the City of New Rochelle, including from the entrance and exits ramps to and from both streets at this junction. 

The waters of New Rochelle Harbor and Long Island Sound surround Glen Island Park.  The island once consisted of five smaller islands.  By filling in the water and wetlands around the islands in the 1920s, a single, 105-acre island was created.   The park features the Glen Island Harbour Club, a county-owned, privately operated catering facility, as well as picnic areas, beach and bathhouse, refreshments facility, playground, and areas for walking and fishing.  The island is the second-most used Westchester County-owned park, requiring large parking lots to accommodate visitors.

In the past, stormwater runoff washing over the parking lots scrubbed away oil and grease, sand and sediment, metals, nutrients, and other pollutants and sent them directly into the surrounding estuarine waters in a solution known as polluted stormwater.

A watershed management plan, completed in 1997 on behalf of five municipalities by staff of the Department of Planning, targeted the park area as a potential stormwater “retrofit” site.  In other words, it was a polluted stormwater source that could be overhauled to improve its water treatment capabilities.   An advanced technology solution was sought to treat the polluted stormwater before it enters the harbor and Sound.  The technology would have to be able to remove a significant amount of several pollutants, not take up much land area in the confines of an island park, withstand the sometimes harsh conditions experienced at a coastal site, and offer a visible element that could be used for educational and demonstration purposes.

Through its research, the Department decided to pursue the technology offered by StormTreat System, whose stormwater management units were installed at only one other location in New York State.  Having successfully secured a state grant and county funding, the Department, with cooperation from the departments of Public Works and Parks, Recreation and Conservation, hired a consultant and contractor to design and install 16 units at Glen Island.  These were designed to treat polluted stormwater running off more than seven acres of pavement from the park’s two largest parking lots.

The project involved the installation of special catch basins and underground pipes to detain stormwater, two new outfall pipes, and 16 StormTreat System units.  A StormTreat System unit is a pre-fabricated, cylindrical “tub” installed flush with the ground.  The bulk of the “tub” is below-ground.  It consists of a series of underground sedimentation chambers with skimmers and an at-grade gravel filter, which serves as a substrate for wetland plants.  Stormwater runoff from the impervious parking lot surfaces is collected in catch basins, routed through the detention pipes, and then distributed amongst the StormTreat units.  After being treated by this system, the stormwater could either pass through a stone reservoir around the units into the surrounding soil or be discharged through a pipe to the harbor.

To View The Site: The site is at Glen Island Park in the City of New Rochelle. From the north take the  Hutchinson River Parkway to the Sanford Boulevard exit.  At exit, turn right.  At second traffic light, turn right onto Pelhamdale Avenue.   Follow to the end and make a left onto Pelham Road.  At first traffic make a right to enter Glen Island Park. OR New England Thruway (Interstate 95) south to Exit 15 (Route 1). Off exit make left onto Route 1 [Post Road]. At second light, make a right onto Weyman Avenue.  Follow Weyman Avenue into Glen Island Park.

Harbor Island Park lies next to Mamaroneck Harbor, part of Long Island Sound, and is used for active and passive recreation. A peninsula flanked by the harbor’s East and West basins forms the middle of the park, where much of the active recreation takes place. Most of the park sits atop soil, rock and other materials used to fill in environmentally valuable tidal wetlands in the early 20th Century.

Along the West Basin, tidal wetlands still cling to the water’s edge next to a concrete and stone retaining wall encircling much of the basin. The basin is used as a boat mooring. Along the west side of the basin next to a lawn used for active and passive recreation, fill had created a steep embankment along the water’s edge. The embankment and part of the areas above it were largely covered with invasive plants, including Japanese knotweed, common reed and garlic mustard. A thin band of smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), an  intertidal wetland plant, clung to the toe of the embankment.

The project, begun in earnest in March 2007 and completed in June 2007, involved cutting back the embankment created by the fill to increase the intertidal zone's width and create a gentler slope. The fill excavated from the embankment was used to create a raised landscaped bed or "berm". The disturbed areas created by the excavation and filling were temporarily stabilized using mesh "blankets" made from coconut fibers. Log-shaped rolls of coconut fiber were also staked into the ground at the water's edge to curb the erosive force of incoming waves. Eventually, all of the coconut fiber products will decompose but, by then, the newly installed plants will be providing long-term stabilization. The created intertidal area (low marsh), embankment, and top of the embankment were planted with appropriate native vegetation, e.g., smooth cordgrass has been planted in the intertidal area, salt marsh hay and marsh elder has been planted in the high marsh, and a variety of coastal grasses, shrubs and trees have been planted on the embankment, along the top of the embankment, and berm.

In addition to these features, a public walkway has been constructed along the top of the berm and embankment and an observation platform has been constructed from the walkway. This allows the public to get a closer look at the salt marsh and other coastal plantings and harbor. Three educational signs were installed along the walkway describing the coastal ecosystem.

During the construction phase of the project, all excavation took place in upland, or non-wetland, areas. The total area of restored salt marsh was  approximately 0.3 acres (13,000 square feet). In addition, the restored upland area was approximately 0.4 acres (17,000 square feet). The site is now being monitored to ensure the project’s success.

After restoration, smooth cordgrass  growing at the water's edge became lush and salt-tolerant plants on the embankment took root.

To View The Site: The site is at Harbor Island Park near Rushmore Avenue in the Village of Mamaroneck. Specifically, it is along the west side of the West Basin, from the end of the existing retaining wall to the edge of village-owned parkland terminating at a privately owned marina.