NJ DEPARTMENT of ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
WATERSHED AND LAND MANAGEMENT

Notice of Rule Proposal
New Jersey’s Protecting Against Climate Threats (NJPACT)
Resilient Environments and Landscape (REAL) Rules

PUBLIC NOTICE

Take notice that the NJ Department of Environmental Protection is proposing amendments, repeals, and new rules to the Coastal Zone Management (CZM) rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7, Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act (FWPA) rules, N.J.A.C. 7:7A, Flood Hazard Area Control Act (FHACA) rules, N.J.A.C. 7:13, and Stormwater Management (SWM) rules, N.J.A.C. 7:8, as well as several additional rules that cross-reference these four chapters, as part of a comprehensive update of the State’s Land Resource Protection program to reflect the latest global, regional, and State-specific scientific information on climate change. These rules work in tandem and collectively help protect New Jersey’s land and water resources, as well as afford protections to public safety, health, and welfare. This rulemaking will ensure the use of reliable climate science
to aid New Jersey communities in better preparing themselves to confront the critical environmental and public safety threats presented by climate change.

Additionally, the Department proposes amendments to update and clarify various aspects of these rules, as well as to further the Watershed and Land Management Program’s continued efforts to increase efficiency, consistency, and accountability in the processing, issuance, and enforcement of permits and authorizations. The notice of proposal is scheduled to be published in the New Jersey Register dated August 5, 2024. A copy of the proposal is available on the Department’s webpages at: https://njdepwptest.net/wp-content/uploads/rules/proposals/proposal-20240805b.pdf ,https://njdepwptest.net/njreal/ and LexisNexis free public access to the New Jersey Register at: https://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/njoal/.

There will be three public hearings concerning the proposal as follows:

September 5, 2024, Live at 6:00 P.M., at Ocean County College, Gateway Lecture Hall #104 (Bldg. #101), College Drive, Toms River, NJ  08754;

September 12, 2024, Virtually at 2:00 P.M.; and

September 19, 2024, Virtually at 10:00 A.M.

A link to the virtual public hearings and more information about the live hearing will be provided on the Department’s NJREAL website https://njdepwptest.net/njreal/hearings/. If you are interested in providing oral testimony or submitting written comments at a public hearing, please see the website at https://njdepwptest.net/njreal/hearings/. You must provide a valid email address so the Department can send you an email confirming receipt of your interest to testify orally at the hearing and provide you with a separate option for a telephone call-in line if you do not have access to a computer that can connect to Microsoft Teams. It is requested (but not required) that anyone providing oral testimony at the public hearing provide a copy of any prepared text to the Department at the hearing. Please note the Department will take oral testimony at the hearings in chronological order based upon when you registered for the event.

Written comments are due by November 3, 2024.  The Department encourages submission of comments electronically at: https://njdepwptest.net/rules/rule-comment-form/.  In the alternative, comments may be submitted on paper to:

Melissa Abatemarco, Esq.
Attention: DEP Docket No. 05-24-05
Office of Legal Affairs
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
401 East State Street, 7th Floor
Mail Code 401-04L
PO Box 402
Trenton, NJ 08625-0402