Current Issues at New Jersey Conservation Foundation

New Jersey Conservation Foundation advocates for state policies that give high priority to protection and restoration of biodiversity on public and private lands, urges the use of modern ecological principles in developing management plans for New Jersey’s public lands, and defends preserved land from improper diversion to other uses.

The Forest Harvest Bill was not posted for a vote and thus expired at the end of the lame duck session. However, it was quickly re-introduced in the new 215th Legislature.

Although we support ecologically sustainable forestry, New Jersey Conservation Foundation does not believe this bill has adequate safeguards to protect our public lands. The management of our forests should not depend on generating revenue from commercial logging.

We and our many partner groups will continue to advocate for strong protections and science-based stewardship of our public lands.

The Garden State Preservation Trust finances the preservation of open space, farmland and historic sites in New Jersey. Today, one third of New Jersey’s dry land mass is permanently preserved as open space – a total acreage that exceeds the size of Grand Canyon National Park!

New Jersey Conservation Foundation continues to be at the forefront of efforts to secure a permanent funding source for the GSPT, as well as for stewardship of preserved lands, including state parks, forests and Wildlife Management Areas.

Now is the time for Governor Christie and our legislative leaders to adopt a long-term, dedicated funding source for open space, farmland and historic preservation. This will allow New Jersey to continue the tremendous work of preserving our landscapes and the animals and plants that depend on them, protecting our drinking water, preserving the farmland that produces our food, and retaining and restoring our historic treasures.

The rapidly growing focus on energy and climate change at the state and national levels creates both challenges and opportunities for land conservation. We are encountering threats to preserved land posed by global warming, as well as proposals to divert preserved land for alternative energy development.

At the same time, we are defending land from threats posed by transmission lines and pipelines, and trying to protect our water resources from natural gas drilling. On the positive side, our work on forest protection and restoration presents an opportunity to promote carbon sequestration.

In recognition of the enormous role energy conservation can play in decreasing energy use, we advocate for a much greater focus on conservation and efficiency in the state's energy master plan. Read about how saving energy saves land >>

The proposed drilling of tens of thousands of natural gas wells in the Delaware River Basin threatens to transform the landscape and result in serious water pollution, flooding and habitat destruction, which will degrade the exceptional quality of the Delaware River headwaters and ecosystem. We oppose the highly controversial practice of shale gas extraction in the Delaware River Basin, which involves hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") of rock deep below the surface

Natural gas drilling has been on hold in the Basin pending adoption of the Delaware River Basin Commission natural gas development regulations, which are currently inadequate to protect New Jersey's waterways.

Pennsylvania is already seeing the damaging impacts to their land and water from fracking and pressure is mounting to allow the disposal of toxic fracking solids and wastewater in New Jersey. New Jersey’s treatment plants cannot handle the storage or treatment of this highly toxic waste.

Recently, the New Jersey Legislature introduced A575/S253, which prohibits the treatment, discharge, disposal or storage in the State of wastewater from hydraulic fracturing. We need your help in urging the Assembly and Senate committees to post these bills in the spring legislative session.

The New Jersey Legislature passed a bill last year to prohibit fracking for natural gas in our state. Governor Christie conditionally vetoed the measure, instituting a one-year moratorium instead. NJCF continues to work with the Delaware Riverkeeper Network and many other organizations to secure a permanent ban on fracking in New Jersey.

Meanwhile, fracking continues at increasing speed in neighboring Pennsylvania, and New York State inches closer to allowing the practice. The Delaware River Basin Commission continues to consider lifting its gas drilling moratorium to allow fracking in the Delaware River Watershed, and the threat of wastewater from fracking grows.

Please email your Assembly Members TODAY to ask that the Frack Waste Ban Bill be scheduled for a hearing.
We urge you to take a moment to call or email your elected representatives and the members of the Assembly Environment Committee now. IMPORTANT NOTE: Assemblyman Greenwald is in a pivotal position and needs to hear from his constituents; his number is below. To find your Legislator, visit www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp.

Talking Points:

•New Jersey’s waste facilities are not designed to safely process this hazardous material

New Jersey has a strong history of adopting comprehensive regional plans. Regional planning is critical to protecting the land and water supplies on which we depend. Other important benefits of these plans include stabilizing local property taxes, retaining the character of rural areas and established communities, and generally promoting growth in places where it is less environmentally damaging and more cost-effective to build infrastructure like roads, sewers and public water systems.

New Jersey Conservation Foundation has been integrally involved in the passage of many landmark New Jersey regional planning laws, including the Pinelands Protection Act, the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act, the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park law, and the State Development and Redevelopment Act. Constant vigilance is required to ensure these laws aren't weakened over time.

Governor Christie recently released a new "state strategic plan" for economic growth, with the aim of replacing our current state plan.

As the most densely populated state in the country, New Jersey has had to implement land use limits and constraints that other states could not imagine. In fact, our state has had some sort of statewide land use plan since the 1930s.

The most recent plan, the State Development and Redevelopment Plan, was adopted in 1992 and revised in 2001. A major goal has been to limit sprawl development that destroys farmland, forests and wildlife habitat, and uses resources inefficiently. The plan also promoted the reuse and redevelopment of our urban centers, cities and towns; and the coordination of planning between local, county and state government.

The new "state strategic plan" is full of laudable goals; the current state plan has those, too. The new plan talks about smart growth and sustainability, as does the current plan. But the new plan is short on details and has not been publicly vetted. The governor's plan is heavy on growth and development, and light on environmental protection and capacity issues.

The state held a series of hearing from February 13 to March 1,2012, and will accept public comments through Monday, April 2.

Comment on the Draft Final Plan

The public may comment orally, and in written form, at the hearing and may submit written comments to the Director of the Office for Planning Advocacy at any time up to 30 days after the last public hearing is conducted pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:85-5.3. Written comments can be filed electronically to osg_ed@sos.state.nj.us or by the U.S. Postal Service to the New Jersey Department of State, Office for Planning Advocacy, 225 West State Street, P.O. Box 820, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0820. Submission of written public comments may also be directed to the State Planning Commission at osg_ed@sos.state.nj.us at any time up to 30 days after the last public hearing is conducted pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:85-5.2.

“Thursday night massacre, kangaroo court, gutless, nasty, dirty politics, and Soviet style governance” are just a few of the terms being used to describe the actions of a majority of the New Jersey Highlands Council members this week when they abruptly voted 9-5 to remove their highly competent and effective executive director, Eileen Swan, without warning or justification. Five members of the Council strongly protested the vote. Read more of Michele Byers' column, The State We're In, about the Highlands Council's action.

Hikers overlooking Butler Reservoir at Apshawa Preserve

The Highlands Act affects 88 municipalities in parts of seven counties: Bergen, Passaic, Morris, Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon and Somerset. The Highlands region provides drinking water to nearly two-thirds of New Jersey residents. If you are either a Highlands water-drinker or a Highlands resident, there is good reason for you to become involved in the region’s protection.

The Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection are both charged with implementing the 2004 Highlands Act. New Jersey Conservation Foundation periodically posts action alerts on Highlands issues, so please stay tuned! Also, the New Jersey Highlands Coalition, of which NJCF is a founding member, has a Highlands Advocate Program that you can join to take action. Please visit the Highlands Coalition website to find out more.

Currently, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is engaged in a process of reviewing many of the state’s environmental rules reflecting Governor Christie’s Executive Orders and Red Tape Commission recommendations to simplify, use “common sense” principles, foster business, and treat permit applicants as “customers.”

This new rule, which will affect nearly 100 existing DEP programs and rules, provides blanket authorization for the DEP Commissioner to waive compliance with specific portions of most DEP rules designed to protect New Jersey's environment.

The rule contains minimal definitions and standards for granting such waivers; NJCF and other environmental organizations have unanimously asked that the rule be withdrawn. Nearly all DEP rules already have built-in waiver provisions. A resolution, opposing the waiver rule, advanced in both the Senate and Assembly last session but was not put to a full vote.

A group of environmental and labor organizations filed suit on March 22nd to block the rule.

Oppose Permit Extension Act to avoid inappropriate development in New Jersey

The Permit Extension Act would not only keep outdated development permits alive, but would allow development in sensitive environmental areas in the Highlands and Pinelands regions. The act was first passed in 2008; this is a new, more environmentally damaging version.

Thanks to work by environmental advocates, citizens and champions in the Legislature, the bill was held in March just before a vote was to be taken. But that doesn’t means the bill is gone; the Legislature could bring it to a vote at any time, even as early as the next voting session in May.

If passed, the Permit Extension Act would add two years to the life of development permits that would have expired years ago – extending them through 2014. If this bill becomes law, stalled and expired development projects could proceed, even if they don’t meet current environmental and public health standards, building codes or local zoning regulations.

As times goes on, towns increase in population, sewer capacity shrinks, water supplies dwindle, schools fill to capacity, traffic gridlocks, and contaminants are found on former industrial sites. Zoning laws and rules change, new scientific data comes to light, better health and environmental protection regulations are put into place, construction codes improve for safety and “green” standards are adopted to increase energy efficiency.

These changing conditions and new regulations won’t matter in many cases if the Permit Extension Act becomes law. A blanket permit extension would allow projects to avoid a new review based on current public health, economic and environmental impacts.

If current conditions are ignored and inappropriate development is allowed, New Jersey’s quality of life will be negatively impacted, with more water pollution, increased sprawl, reduced drinking water supply, more flooding and loss of local control for municipalities.

We urge you to contact your legislators and ask them to oppose the Permit Extension Act, A1338/S743. To find your legislators, go to www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp.

Through our farmland preservation work, New Jersey Conservation Foundation is working towards a day when an abundance of locally grown New Jersey food, produced in a healthy, environmentally sound manner, will be available to feed the region.

As part of that vision, large swaths of preserved farmland will not only support the local food system, but will also protect the state’s water supply, combat global warming by sequestering carbon, and connect with other preserved lands – parks, trails, and natural areas – as part of an interconnected system of open space that affords the public outdoor recreational opportunities, a connection to local food sources, and all of the amenities associated with preserved, open land.

To fulfill this vision, we lobby congress for federal Farmland Protection Program funds each year, and the New Jersey Legislature for State Farmland Preservation Program funding. We promote natural resource protections – especially soil protections - for farmland preserved with public money, so that the agricultural soils of today are available to grow food tomorrow.

We are working to strengthen farmland preservation and agricultural viability in our Delaware Bay Watershed project area. This region is rich in natural resources, and is truly the bread basket of New Jersey agriculture. We are developing pilot projects, including marketing initiatives, to assist sustainable farm operations in the region and connect local food with urban communities in the region.

In 2009 we spearheaded the Salem County Agritourism website to connect farmers with new marketing opportunities, expand agricultural tourism, promote fresh food campaigns and connect farmers with conservation programs.