In places like Old Bridge, you see why New Jersey is called the Garden State. About 5,015 acres of the township area is farmland. Agriculture is one of the major industries of the area. The ecosystem of a farm is a complex of living organisms, managed by humans and geared towards the produce that it creates. The township has several farms within its borders, cultivating both vegetables and fruit.
Old Bridge township has 2.25 miles of sea shore along the Raritan Bay in the Raritan River estuary. The New Jersey sea shore is shallow with extensive wetlands. As is typical along the New Jersey coastline, these have extensive ecosystems both in the shallows and in the deeper water, featuring shellfish, wading birds like the plover, and various types of vegetation adapted to the marsh conditions. A bit further inland, the sea shore ecosystem turns into salt water marshes, featuring cordgrass, saltworth, and black grass.
Along the Raritan River, the flat landscape has turned into freshwater swamps, covered in cattail and reeds, and forested at the edges. Freshwater marshes are extremely productive in ecological terms. The water, sunlight and minerals are converted into biomass at much higher rates than dry ecosystems, in particular during summer. Insects proliferate and with them the birds which feed on them, and the predators which prey on the birds, such as peregrine falcons and polecats.
The Atlantic white cedar grows in freshwater wetlands all along the Atlantic coast from southern Maine to northern Florida. They form dense stands with thousands of trees per acre, crowding out other vegetation. The young cedar seedlings require strong sunlight and cannot tolerate shade, expanding the white cedar stands gradually. Of the total 30,000 acres of white cedar swamps in New Jersey, only a few are found in Old Bridge.
All of New Jersey was once covered in dense forest, which the native Americans cleared in places. But the forest did not retreat until the coming of the European settlers, who cut it down for agriculture. In Old Bridge, hardwood forest still remain, featuring American Elm, Beech, Black Ash, Dogwood, Mulberry, Red Maple, and many other types of trees. A large portion of the 8,996 acres dedicated to open spaces in Old Bridge belongs to the approximately 42 percent of New Jersey that is forested.
The New Jersey pine barrens are unlike other ecosystems in the world, according to the New Jersey Pinelands Alliance. The pine barrens are mostly found in the south central part of the state. There is a small part in the southern part of Old Bridge township. Here, the dry forest is populated by pines. The ecosystem is shaped by the vegetation, with fungi, grasses and animals adapted to the forest vegetation, such as wild deer.
The Old Bridge Township borders on the South Branch of Raritan River, which was badly damaged by environmental pollution such as stormwater runoff from farms and urban development; discharges from wastewater treatment plants; and contamination from various industrial facilities during the mid-20th century. However, the river, the riparian area, and the estuary of the Raritan River has made a recovery and is now a thriving ecosystem, featuring bald eagles, peregrine falcons, and osprey. A thriving fish population has brought seals and otters to the river and its estuary as well.
