Volunteer Landscaping and Cleanup at the Ridgewood Reservoir

Join NYC H2O and the NYC Parks Department as we remove invasive plants and plant native plants in the pollinator garden!

The Ridgewood Reservoir in Highland Park is a 50+ acre natural oasis that straddles the border of Brooklyn and Queens. Built in 1859 to supply the once independent City of Brooklyn with high quality water, it became obsolete with the addition of new reservoirs in the Catskills in the 1950’s and was decommissioned in the 1980’s.

Since then, nature took its course in a perfect case study of ecological succession. A lush and dense forest has grown in its two outside basins while a freshwater pond with waterfowl sits in the middle basin. This fresh water source is critical to migrating birds on the Atlantic Flyway.

We will meet in the parking lot on Vermont Place, Brooklyn, NY 11207, across the street from the reservoir.