Alternatives Evaluated

Alternatives

  • 14A - Comprehensive system of levees, floodwalls, nonstructural measures, some bridge and dam modifications (alternative 14A from 1987) (Selected to move forward for further analysis in next stage of study)
  • 16A - Comprehensive system of levees, floodwalls, nonstructural measures, channel modification, some bridge and dam modifications (alternative 16A from 1987)
  • Newark Bay Outlet Tunnel Plan - 1990 authorized plan (dual inlet tunnel, modified version of original alternative 30E) as designed in September 1995 (Selected to move forward for further analysis in next stage of study)
  • Improvements  to Beatties Dam and Two Bridges
  • Nonstructural – 10 year (Selected to move forward for further analysis in next stage of study)
  • No Action

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    Comprehensive system of levees, floodwalls, nonstructural measures, some bridge and dam modifications (alternative 14A from 1987)

     

    Alternative 14A includes levees and floodwalls combined with nonstructural measures (like floodproofing, raising homes and buyouts). It does not include channel improvements but does include the possibility of bridge and dam modifications to help mitigate structural impediments to flow.

    Alternative 14A has approximately 24 miles of levees, ranging from 3 feet high to 17 feet high and approximately 17 miles of floodwalls ranging from 5 feet high to 22 feet high. The alternative also calls for 46 pump stations. The nonstructural measures would be applied to approximately 6,000 structures in the heart of the floodplain.

    In 1987, this alternative reduced flood risk for a 10-year event with nonstructural measures and for a 100-year event with levees and floodwalls.

    The above map shows a very rough idea of where some of these features might be considered in alternative 14A. Please note the map is a very rough look at the alternative, is not to scale and because of that some features or landmarks may seem to be in the wrong places in relation to other locations on the map.

    Click here to see a more detailed map of this alternative (~3MB). Please note that these more detailed alternative maps are not final products as the study is still ongoing.

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    Comprehensive system of levees, floodwalls, nonstructural measures, channel modification, some bridge and dam modifications (alternative 16A from 1987)

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    Alternative 16A includes a series of levees, floodwalls and channel improvements combined with nonstructural measures (like floodproofing, raising homes and buyouts).

    Alternative 16A has approximately 20 miles of levees, ranging from 4 feet high to 17 feet high and approximately 9 miles of floodwalls ranging from 7 feet high to 24 feet high. The alternative also calls for 22 pump stations. The nonstructural measures would be applied to approximately 6,000 structures in the heart of the floodplain. It includes approximately 16.5 miles of channel improvements to the Passaic River downstream of Two Bridges and some bridge and dam modifications.

    In 1987, this alternative reduced flood risk for a 10-year event with nonstructural measures and for a 100-year event with levees, floodwalls and channel improvements.

    The above map shows a very rough idea of where some of these features might be considered in alternative 16A. Please note the map is a very rough look at the alternative, is not to scale and because of that some features or landmarks may seem to be in the wrong places in relation to other locations on the map.

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    Newark Bay Outlet Tunnel Plan - 1990 authorized plan (dual inlet tunnel, modified version of original alternative 30E) as designed in September 1995

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    The Newark Bay Outlet Tunnel Plan, which is the plan authorized for construction by Congress in the Water Resources Development Act of 1990, is a modified version of the original Alternative 30E tunnel plan that was analyzed in the 1987 study (which is the study being re-evaluated). In the years following the original report in 1987, the Alternative 30E tunnel plan was modified a bit as it went into the design phase. The latest iteration of the tunnel plan (authorized by WRDA 1990) is the basis for the alternative being evaluated as part of the current re-evaluation study. It is different than the originally authorized tunnel plan from 1987 as the dual inlet tunnel outlets in Newark Bay.

    The alternative calls for a 20-mile-long diversion tunnel with a 42-foot diameter that would take floodwaters from an inlet on the upper Pompton River in Wayne, New Jersey down to an outlet in Newark Bay. There would also be a 1.2-mile-long spur tunnel with a 23-foot diameter to convey central basin floodwaters from an inlet just downstream of Two Bridges in Wayne, New Jersey to an underground connection with the main tunnel. It's important to note that the tunnel outlet would be in Newark Bay and not at Third River as was originally proposed in the 1987 report.

    The Newark Bay Outlet Tunnel Plan would also include approximately 7 miles of levees and approximately 13 miles of floodwalls. The alternative also calls for 15 pump stations and 7 miles of channel improvements. It does not call for nonstructural measures.

    The duel-inlet diversion tunnel plan recommended by the Corps of Engineers' 1987 report went into the detailed design phase in the 1990s. In 1996, the State of New Jersey withdrew support of the authorized project (which was 30E, the dual-inlet tunnel alternative).  The detailed design General Design Memorandums dated 1995 remain draft.  Without a non-Federal sponsor, the project was stopped.

    The above map shows a very rough idea of where some of these features might be considered in the modified alternative 30E, Newark Bay Outlet Tunnel Plan. Please note the map is a very rough look at the alternative, is not to scale and because of that some features or landmarks may seem to be in the wrong places in relation to other locations on the map.

    Click here to see a more detailed map of this alternative (~3MB). Please note that these more detailed alternative maps are not final products as the study is still ongoing.

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    Improvements  to Beatties Dam and Two Bridges

    Beatties Dam
    Beatties Dam in Little Falls, NJ

    Two Bridges
    Two Bridges at the confluence of the Pompton and Passaic rivers

    This alternative considers a variety of possible modifications to around Beatties Dam in Little Falls, NJ and/or at Two Bridges at the confluence of the Pompton and Passaic rivers. This alternative includes looking at removing a portion or all of Beatties Dam, placing gates on Beatties Dam, constructing a weir or some other structure at Two Bridges to regulate the flow, and/or channel modifications.

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    Nonstructural – 10 year

    This alternative involves addressing the flood risk management issues in the Passaic River Basin exclusively through nonstructural measures (like floodproofing, raising homes and buyouts). The nonstructural measures would be in lieu of large-scale construction projects, like levees, floodwalls, diversion tunnels, etc. that tend to have a greater impact on the environment than modifying existing structures.

    The Corps of Engineers is required to consider this alternative as part of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), originally passed in 1970.

    Click here to see a map of this alternative (~3MB). Please note that these more detailed alternative maps are not final products as the study is still ongoing..

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    No Action

    This alternative includes no flood risk management features and examines the impact of taking no action in the basin over the long run. It also acts as a sort of baseline for the other alternatives to be compared to.

    The Corps of Engineers is required to consider this alternative as part of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), originally passed in 1970.

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