By: Lindsey Sigmund, Program Manager, New Jersey Future
From flooding near rivers, rising sea levels, and the presence of lead and other contaminants in drinking water, communities across the Delaware River Watershed face many water-related risks. Depending on where they live, these issues impact community members differently. The New Jersey Water Risk and Equity Map contains information to help residents, advocates, and policymakers understand water-related risks in their communities and address inequities.
The Water Risk and Equity Map was developed by a subcommittee of the Jersey Water Works Green Infrastructure Committee, New Jersey Future staff, and the mapping tool’s host, Rutgers University. The subcommittee included representation from nonprofit organizations, higher education institutions, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), and other stakeholders. The map aims to demonstrate the overlay of water risks and demographic factors and can be used to address inequities in water risk exposure. This tool makes it possible to visualize information, which can be a more effective means of communication than text alone.
The map contains several types of data: water risks, demographic information, and areas of interest. Water risk data shows areas at risk of flooding, lead service lines, impaired water quality, and other issues. Demographic information shows the location of overburdened communities as defined by the NJDEP. Areas of interest show additional information, such as watershed boundaries. A unique aspect of this map is the two types of environmental justice hotspot layers, water infrastructure, and flooding hotspots, where overburdened communities face compounding water risks. The hotspot layers help prioritize areas that would benefit from implementing infrastructure improvements to mitigate water quality impairments, reduce flooding, and address antiquated water infrastructure.
Image 1 & 2 Map Key
Image 1: Environmental Justice Hotspots in the Lower Delaware Watershed Management Area (WMA)
For example, Image 1 highlights New Jersey’s Watershed Management (WMA) Area 18, the Lower Delaware WMA, located in the larger Delaware River Watershed, and the environmental justice hotspots in the region. On this map–yellow areas are water infrastructure hotspots, blue are flooding hotspots, and green demonstrates where water infrastructure and flooding risks are present. Zooming closer, Image 2 shows the City of Camden, New Jersey, and the water-related issues the City experiences. Camden faces flooding due to its proximity to the Delaware River and outdated water infrastructure while coping with combined sewer overflows (CSOs), lead service lines, and other stressors.
Image 2: Environmental Justice Hotspots in the City of Camden, New Jersey
The map landing page goes into further detail on the datasets that inform the environmental justice hotspots. One critical dataset, lead service lines in New Jersey, was updated in December 2023 and will be updated as NJDEP gathers new information on lead service lines. As New Jersey gears up to replace all lead service lines by 2031, the urgency of addressing these disparities is further underscored by the looming funding gap and the financial strain many municipal systems face. In this context, the inability of overburdened communities to afford a cost share for these crucial replacements exacerbates the situation's urgency. New Jersey Future utilizes this data when educating the public, legislators, and other stakeholders. By analyzing the distribution of lead service lines alongside the social stressors, stakeholders can identify high-priority areas that require immediate attention and targeted support. This holistic approach enables a more nuanced understanding of the challenges at hand. It empowers policymakers and community leaders to develop sustainable solutions prioritizing equity, environmental justice, and community well-being.
Infrastructure planning and design should be completed according to the unique needs of the community and to address historic underinvestment in communities. NJF’s Mainstreaming Green Infrastructure (MGI) program developed a Green Infrastructure Municipal Toolkit to help communities plan, implement, and maintain green infrastructure to address water quality issues and localized flooding. The Water Risk and Equity Map is included in the toolkit to help communities prioritize green infrastructure investments in communities facing disproportionate environmental risk or have experienced historic underinvestment. New Jersey Future, Jersey Water Works, and Rutgers University hope the map will help community groups and stakeholders advance their local advocacy work, help discover new relationships between datasets, and inspire action to address water-related inequities across New Jersey and the larger watershed.