The Bureau of Planning Services provides open space and recreation planning guidance for municipal, county, nonprofit, and state open space acquisition and recreation development efforts. It administers the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund monies for the preservation of open space and development of recreation facilities. The Bureau prepares the State’s Open Space and Recreation Plan that guides the expenditure of federal and state funds for land preservation and recreation projects.

The Bureau’s Geographic Information Section, in cooperation with other state agencies and nonprofit groups, is compiling geographical information on New Jersey’s open space resources for DEP’s ArcInfo Geographic Information System (GIS). The GIS, a computerized mapping and data management system, can assemble, store, and manipulate geographically-referenced information, and can display the results in mapped form. Increasingly, the GIS is being used as a planning tool for the state’s open space preservation program.