Santos Farm

In the early 20th century, the Delaware River was steeped in so much filth that it stained the hulls of boats a dark brown and sickened visitors just from its stench. Increased dead zones led to a waterway devoid of fish and other aquatic life.

After a decade of dynamic transformation, the Delaware River earned the “River of the Year” accolade in 2020 by the American Rivers organization.

What happened in that decade? Stricter environmental laws and collaboration among government agencies and nonprofits led to the Delaware River’s rebirth.

Trust for Public Land protected hundreds of acres in more than a dozen locations along the river. In addition to building parks along the river’s banks, in 2009 we conserved the 88.5-acre Santos Farm. As one of the last undeveloped farmland tracts in Pike County, this land offers vital habitat for various wildlife, links current parklands, and enhances public recreation. With 4,000 feet of frontage along the Delaware River, the farm also provides one of the few access points to the Delaware River in Milford Township.

Land protection is critical to improving water quality because it stanches the flow of stormwater runoff and other pollutants.

The Delaware River, the longest free-flowing waterway east of the Mississippi, meanders more than 300 miles from the Catskill Mountains in New York to Delaware Bay. Along the way, it serves as a major port, and now that it has been cleaned up, it provides drinking water to 13 million people and beckons hikers, kayakers, and birders.