Field Programs

There is no better natural classroom than Long Island’s Central Pine Barrens region. With its rivers, bays, streams and wetlands; dense pine forests teeming with wildlife; beautiful

farmland; historical structures; vast open spaces and so much more, you could explore the region for years and never run out of new things to enjoy and study.

Due to this bounty of natural beauty, the Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission stages most of its educational programming outside the classroom and among the wonders of the Central Pine Barrens region.

“Barrens to Bay” Summer Camp

For a summer camp experience like no other, send your child to the “Barrens to Bay” summer camp co-sponsored by the Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission and Friends of Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge. (See registration form below.)

Open to campers from six to 12 years old and held at Wertheim, the camp features a wide variety of environmentally oriented activities, including nature walks on Wertheim’s beautiful trails, lessons, crafts, games and much more. Campers will learn about marine and environmental science, track animals and study specimens with microscopes, among many other fun activities. Your kids will expand their knowledge of the Central Pine Barrens ecosystem while having a fun and unique camp experience.

The camp is split into three sessions for campers six to nine years old and three for campers 10 to 12 years old and runs from Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. during the summer months. Each session is one week long.

Click this link to view a short video the campers made during the 2024 camp charting the growth of monarch butterflies raised during the course of the summer!

Check here for updates on the 2025 Barrens to Bay camp! Registration for 2025 sessions will begin in February.

For more information, please contact Tim Motz at [email protected] or 631-563-0396. 

One of the most successful programs organized by the Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission is the “A Day in the Life” program, in which students from schools all throughout the Central Pine Barrens region and beyond spend a day studying the ecosystems of Long Island’s many rivers and estuaries.

The program has expanded greatly in recent years, now involving approximately 4,000 students and 50 school districts assisted by more than 130 teachers, dozens of partner agencies and hundreds of natural history experts and science teachers. River systems studied now include the Carmans River, Connetquot River, Nissequogue River and Peconic Estuary, among other areas explored.

“A Day in the Life” allows students to conduct student science at each site to discover how the river they’re studying fits into the larger ecosystem. Students examine the physical and chemical aspects of each aquatic ecosystem, such as salinity and the presence of nitrates, phosphates and oxygen levels in the water.  Students also conduct biodiversity inventories of the flora and fauna in and around the river or estuary.

The program is coordinated by the commission in conjunction with Brookhaven National Laboratory and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

To learn more about these exciting field programs and how to get involved contact our Educational Outreach and Communications Coordinator Tim Motz at [email protected] or call 631-563-0396.