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Why bacteria, debris, and flooding move downstream — and what residents, municipalities, and county leaders can do
By Christine Toth
One spring, a group of us walked down Clausland Mountain picking up trash along a stream — an event organized by the Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance. The wooded highlands of Clausland Mountain are the main headwater source of Sparkill Creek. They belong to a watershed: a region that channels rain, snowmelt, and runoff into tributaries that ultimately reach the Hudson River at Piermont Marsh. A soda can dropped on the mountain can travel downstream and reach this ecologically important marsh weeks later.
The watershed struggles with bacterial contamination, flooding, siltation, pollution, and invasive plants. Heavy rain causes fast-moving stormwater that erodes soil and carries sediment, waste, bacteria and road salt into the creek, worsening flooding downstream and intensifying these issues.
While much of Sparkill Creek’s channel runs through Orangetown, its watershed ignores town lines and collects stormwater from neighborhoods and tributaries in Clarkstown and other communities. The creek flows through parks and commercial corridors. Every property could become part of the watershed sponge. County leaders can enable essential improvements by overseeing wastewater and stormwater projects at key outfall points and repairing septic systems. They can also support ongoing, multi-year invasive species removal, pinpoint floodplains and possible bioswale locations, and coordinate funding, timing, and maintenance to restore native vegetation in key areas. Other New York counties have curbed invasive species through coordinated, multi-year removal. Sparkill could adopt a similar model.
The creek also flows through residential properties. Each plot of land offers an opportunity to absorb floodwater, build ecosystem resilience, and boost watershed health. Mainstream landscaping often relies on herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers that contaminate runoff – even when no stream runs directly through the property. Non-native ornamental plants such as Japanese Maple and Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) are commonly planted alongside turf grass. While ornamental plants and lawns can absorb some rainfall, they lack the deep root systems that help soil soak up stormwater, reduce runoff, and protect stream banks during floods.
As the climate crisis accelerates, communities may need to consider replacing traditional lawns. Native plants evolved with local rainfall patterns, soils, and floods, making them well adapted to control saturation. That difference can determine whether rain remains on the land or becomes floodwater downstream. Replacing turf with low-maintenance ground covers such as combination of Foamflower, Wild Strawberry, and Native Sedge improves aesthetics while absorbing water like thick sponges. Native trees and shrubs — including Flowering Dogwood, Winterberry, and Arrowwood Viburnum — add curb appeal, seasonal interest and structure while reducing runoff.
Recommended streamside vegetation includes Soft Rush, Blue Flag Iris, Pickerelweed, and Buttonbush. Pickerelweed’s spikes of deep violet flowers last through most of the summer. Its roots are instrumental in purifying water by taking up surplus nutrients, including nitrogen and phosphorus from fertilizers. The dense root system also stabilizes shorelines, reduces erosion, and slows water flow, allowing sediment to settle. Buttonbush’s spherical clusters of white flowers provide nectar for butterflies. Its deep, fibrous roots trap sediment and soil, helping keep water clear so aquatic life can thrive.
Several counties in the U.S., including nearby Pennsylvania counties such as Chester County and Montgomery County, provide county-supported incentives or technical assistance for conservation landscaping and riparian buffer restoration, often carried out through conservation districts, stormwater programs or watershed organizations. Rockland County does not currently offer a similar county-supported framework. Here, homeowners interested in planting native buffer vegetation can take advantage of conservation programs such as the NYS DEC’s Spring Seedling Sale or Trees for Tribs.
The Soil & Water Conservation District serves as a local advisor and collaborative partner for soil, water, and watershed conservation efforts. This gap calls attention to an opportunity for Rockland County to provide similar incentives to streamside homeowners in the future.
Programs such as the Rockland Audubon Bird Sanctuary (rocklandaudubon.org/bird-sanctuary) provide a feasible first step. Native plants evolved alongside local birds and wildlife and have adapted to regional rainfall, soil, and flooding patterns. While substantial incentive programs are critical, residents do not have to wait. This program offers guidance on native plants, recognition signage, and a visible way for homeowners to show their commitment to protecting water and wildlife.
Restoring habitat along Sparkill Creek would benefit many wildlife species that depend on wet forests and healthy streams. Rusty Blackbirds, a rapidly declining North American songbird, winter in wet forests feeding on aquatic insects. Improved habitats would also help Wood Ducks, Beavers, Northern Water Snakes, Spotted Salamanders, and other amphibians, which face the highest global extinction risk among animal groups.
The spring before last, a group of us went out onto a streambank in Tappan and spent the morning digging, planting, and tubing native tree seedlings. In just a few hours, a bare stretch of bank filled with dozens of little trees — part of DEC’s Trees for Tribs program, carried out locally by the Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance. Over time, those trees will help hold the bank together with their roots and filter runoff before it reaches the stream. Like Clausland Mountain, Tappan’s tributaries are part of the Sparkill Creek headwaters.
Clear water lets in light, sustaining life — from headwater streams to Piermont Marsh.
Christine Toth is the Conservation Chair for the Rockland Audubon Society
