NJ DEPARTMENT of ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
LAND USE MANAGEMENT
DIVISION
OF LAND USE REGULATION

Notice of Rule Proposal
Proposed Repeal and New Rules:
Flood Hazard Area Control Rules, N.J.A.C. 7:13

Proposed Amendments and New Rules:
Ninety-Day Construction Permits Rules, N.J.A.C. 7:1C
Coastal Permit Program Rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7
Coastal Zone Management Rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7E

Public Notice
Take notice that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (Department)
is proposing to repeal the existing Flood Hazard Area Control
rules and to adopt new rules in its place. The Department
is also proposing related amendments to the Ninety-Day Construction
Permits rules, Coastal Permit Program rules and Coastal Zone
Management rules. A statement of the substance of the proposal
follows:

The Flood Hazard Area Control rules implement the New Jersey
Flood Hazard Area Control Act, N.J.S.A. 58:16A-50 et seq.,
through which the Department executes the directive to “adopt
land use regulations for the flood hazard area, to control
stream encroachments, to coordinate effectively the development,
dissemination, and use of information on floods and flood
damages that may be available.” The
Department’s experience in administering these rules,
as well as the recent flood events in the State, have demonstrated
the need to adopt new rules that will better protect the
public from the hazards of flooding, preserve the quality
of surface waters and protect the wildlife and vegetation
that exist within and depend upon such areas for sustenance
and habitat.

Unless properly controlled, development within flood hazard areas
can increase the intensity and frequency of flooding by reducing
flood storage, increasing stormwater runoff and obstructing
the movement of floodwaters. In addition, structures that
are improperly built in flood hazard areas are subject to
flood damage and threaten the health, safety and welfare
of those who use them. Furthermore, healthy vegetation adjacent
to surface waters is essential for maintaining bank stability
and water quality. The indiscriminate disturbance of such
vegetation can destabilize channels, leading to increased
erosion and sedimentation that exacerbates the intensity
and frequency of flooding. The loss of vegetation adjacent
to surface waters also reduces filtration of stormwater runoff
and thus degrades the quality of these waters.

In light of the concerns described above, the proposed new Flood
Hazard Area Control rules incorporate
more stringent standards for development in flood hazard
areas and adjacent to surface waters in order to mitigate
the adverse impacts to flooding and the environment that
can be caused by development. Consequently, a large number
of significant changes are being proposed to the construction
and environmental standards of the rules. For example, under
the proposed rules, any flood storage that is lost due to
most new construction activities must be compensated by the
creation of an equal volume of flood storage either onsite
or in close proximity to the development. This will preserve
existing flood storage and help mitigate increases in flooding
over time. Furthermore, the 25-ft and 50-ft stream buffers
under the existing rules are proposed for expansion to 50-ft,
150-ft and 300-ft, depending on the environmental resources
of each stream. Many other changes are also being proposed
to protect the public from the hazards of flooding, prevent
unnecessary impacts to stream corridors, and facilitate projects
that would benefit the environment and not contribute to
flooding.

The Department is also proposing related amendments to the Coastal
Permit Program rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7, and to the Coastal Zone
Management rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7E, in order to ensure better
consistency with N.J.A.C. 7:13 as regards development in
flood hazard areas and preservation of vegetation and habitat
along surface waters. For example, the new construction and
environmental standards of the Flood Hazard Area Control
rules are proposed for incorporation into the coastal rules,
and the proposed stream buffers described above would be
extended to include most tidal waterways. In addition, flood
hazard area application fees and review procedures are proposed
to be relocated into the Flood Hazard Area Control rules
from the Ninety-Day Construction Permits rules, N.J.A.C.
7:1C, so that all fees and application review standards are
located in one rule.

The proposal is scheduled to be published in the New Jersey Register
dated October 2, 2006. The proposal
can be viewed or downloaded at www.njflood.org.

Public hearings concerning this proposal will be held as follows:

Monday, November
20, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
New Jersey
Highlands Council
100
North Road County
Route 513)
Chester, New
Jersey

Monday,
November 27, 2006, 1:00 p.m.
DEP Public
Hearing Room
401 East State Street
Trenton, New Jersey

Monday, December
4, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
The Richard Stockton College of New
Jersey
Vera King Farris Drive
Pomona, New Jersey

Written comments may be submitted by December 31, 2006 to:

NJ
Department of Environmental Protection
Gary Brower, Esq.
ATTN:
DEP Docket No. 16-06-08/70
Office
of Legal Affairs
PO
Box 402
Trenton,
New Jersey 08625