Governor McGreevey talks with Senator Joseph Coniglio and members of Paramus Girl Scout Troop 271 and 404 about the importance of preserving the Highlands to safeguard drinking water.

Governor McGreevey's Fight for Clean Water Takes Center Stage in Resource-rich Highlands

Nowhere is the fight to protect drinking water more important than in New Jersey's cherished Highlands region. Its high-quality water resources supply clean, fresh water to more than half of New Jersey's families, yielding nearly 400 million gallons every day - a fact that has added urgency to a bold, new protection plan spearheaded by Governor James E. McGreevey.

The Highlands Task Force, established by the Governor last fall, has called for "immediate action" to implement a series of its recommendations to preserve the resource-rich Highlands and protect its vital drinking water supply from the dangers of burgeoning development. Governor McGreevey charged the task force with delivering recommendations that would advance water-resource protections, conservation efforts, smart growth, and regional planning in the Highlands. The task force presented an action plan to the Governor and the New Jersey Legislature in March.

In response, New Jersey lawmakers introduced S-1, the "Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act," comprehensive legislation that encompasses the task force's key recommendations. Soon after, lawmakers on both the Senate Environment Committee and the Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee began holding joint public hearings on the legislation.

The Highlands region spans portions of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, and is widely regarded as a national treasure. Situated near the nation's largest metropolitan area, the Highlands is an oasis of rolling hills, forests, farmland, and pristine lakes, reservoirs and streams. Every year, some 20 million people visit the Highlands to enjoy its breathtaking scenic beauty, rich wildlife habitat, historic sites and wealth of recreational opportunities. New Jersey's portion of the Highlands is a 1,250-square-mile area that stretches across the northwestern part of the state. It is New Jersey's last large, unprotected expanse of contiguous forest and unspoiled mountain lakes and streams. As is the case with much of New Jersey's undeveloped land, however, the Highlands is increasingly at risk of being devoured by sprawl, prompting Governor McGreevey to make Highlands preservation a top priority.

Since taking office, Governor McGreevey has protected approximately 17,000 acres of open space in and around the Highlands, preserved more than 4,500 acres of farmland in the region and designated seven Highlands waterbodies as Category One (C1), the state's highest level of water-quality protection.

The task force's key recommendations included:

• Identifying and protecting a core area of the Highlands most sensitive land - a specially designated Preservation Area that is expected to cover between 350,000 and 390,000 acres.

• Enhancing environmental protections in the Preservation Area with the Legislature directing DEP to develop regulatory standards and limits for land and natural resource uses, including impervious cover, steep slopes, waste water treatment extensions, water allocations and buffers on freshwater wetlands.

• Creating a Highlands drinking water protection and regional planning council, comprising elected local and county officials and citizens, and developing a regional master plan for the Highlands region that preserves natural resources and enhances sustainable growth and quality of life. The Council would have independent, mandatory authority for planning, zoning and enforcement in the Preservation Area, with advisory authority outside the designated core area.

• Enhancing the land preservation program in the Highlands with the Governor directing state agencies to immediately target the Preservation Area, particularly lands that provide the greatest protection for drinking water and large forested areas, for open space acquisition and preservation under the Green Acres and Farmland Preservation programs.

• Mobilize state agencies, specifically the departments of Environmental Protection, Agriculture, Transportation, and Education, and the Commerce and Economic Growth Commission, into concerted action to protect the Highlands. These agencies should examine how state aid, assistance and incentives can be used to encourage protection of natural resources and promote smart growth.

• Collaborate with the other Highlands states to develop a regional preservation strategy.

For more information, visit www.savethehighlands.org.