Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group
Welcome to Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group! We are based out of Highland Park, NJ, but open to anything environmental anywhere on our one planet. Thus far, most of the work we have done has been trash clean-ups in and around Highland Park and along the Raritan River, and rain garden maintanece. We have been doing clean-ups in “natural” areas and “in town” as well. Clean-ups are usually all ages. See below for the latest details on dates and locations. We have worked with several other groups including Sustainable Highland Park, Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership, and Beautiful Edison. In the future, we plan to do much more.
We are now also maintaining the rain gardens in town. We have done planting in the gardens on South 4th, South 5th, and the Teen Center. We will be planting bulbs in Fall 2026. We will continue to maintain the gardens in perpetuity. See below for any scheduled rain garden work. Dates, times, and locations will be added as they become available.
If you wish to contact us, join our clean-up mailing list, suggest a clean-up location, add your clean-up details to the list, have a joint clean-up, sign-up for our rain garden email list, or for any other reason, you can email us at hpeegnews@gmail.com
Below is a list of currently scheduled cleanups and the groups running them. HPEEG plans to be present for all (if possible). Details will be updated as they become available. For all clean-ups gloves, bags, grabbers, and other equipment will be provided. Clean-up details are added as they are determined, so please refresh the page to see the latest details. SHP/HPEEG dates for for clean-ups for 2026 are now available! Exact times (generally 2 hrs in the 9:00 am to 12:00 pm range) and exact locations for some are to be determined. All clean-ups are weather permitting so check back for any cancellation notices. Below the clean-ups is the schedule for rain garden work. Rain garden work is all ages, and all supplies will be provided.
CLEAN-UPS
Sunday August 16, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – High School/Middle School – 9:00 am – 11:00 am – Meet in the parking lot off North 5th Ave., Highland Park, NJ 08904
Saturday September 5, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – Downtown, Rain Gardens, Municipal Lots, Etc. – 9:00 am – 11:00 am – Meet at the Municipal Lot between South 2nd and South 3rd at the Welkovits Pavilion, Highland Park, NJ 08904
Sunday September 20, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group/Highland Park Conservative Temple – Congregation Anshe Emeth Sisterhood/Shorashim Hebrew School at HPCT-CAE /Congregation Kol Ami – Along the Raritan River at the Meadows Trail – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Meet at the entrance to Meadows Trail near the intersection of South 5th ave and Valentine Street, Highland Park, NJ 08904
Saturday October 3, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
Sunday October 13, 2026 (Moved from October 18) – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
Saturday November 7, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
Sunday November 15, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
Saturday December 5, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
Sunday December 20, 2026 – Sustainable Highland Park/Highland Park Ecology and Environmental Group – 10:00 am – 12:00 pm – Location TBD
RAIN GARDENS
Wednesday August 12, 2026 – Rain Garden Maintenance – 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – South 5th Ave just off Raritan Ave
Thursday August 20, 2026 – Rain Garden Maintenance – 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Location TBD
Sunday August 23, 2026 (moved from Saturday Aug 22) Rain Garden Maintenance– 9:00 am – 11:00 am – Location TBD
Thursday September 3, 2026 – Rain Garden Maintenance – 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Location TBD
Wednesday September 9, 2026 – Rain Garden Maintenance – 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Location TBD
Thursday September 17, 2026 – Rain Garden Maintenance – 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Location TBD
LINKS TO OUR PARTNERS
Sustainable Highland Park: sustainablehighlandpark.org/
Highland Park Environmental Commission: https://hpenvironmentalcommission.org/
Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership: https://lowerraritanwatershed.org/
Beautiful Edison: htttps://BeautifulEdison.com
Edison Community Gardens Initiative: https://edisoncommunitygardens.org/
Reformed Church of Highland Park: https://www.rchighlandpark.org/
New Jersey Litter Picker: https://www.facebook.com/groups/269732495173783