N.J. Admin. Code § 7:3-5.4

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 17, September 3, 2024

Section 7:3-5.4 - Background and goals

(a) A forest stewardship plan shall begin with a background and goals section.

(b) With regard to background, the section shall:

1. Describe the location of the property, given in terms such as the distance and direction along a roadway from an intersection or other distinctive feature, and indicate where the property is to be accessed from a public roadway;

2. State whether all or part of the property is located in the Highlands Region, as designated by N.J.S.A. 13:20-7, or the Pinelands Area, as designated by N.J.S.A. 13:18A-11;

3. Provide relevant history of the property, including:

i. Information regarding the present condition of the property's forest land, the property's past ownership, change in land use over time, and past events or practices that contribute to the present condition, such as past harvesting and other forest management activities, agricultural practices, wildfire, flooding, drought, and/or insect and disease outbreaks; and

ii. For any forestry plan applicable to the property within the past 10 years, the type of plan (such as woodland management plan or forest stewardship plan approved under this subchapter), and date and reason the plan has ended or will end (such as by expiration, termination, or revocation);

4. If a prior forest stewardship plan applies to the property, whether it is not yet expired or has expired within the past 10 years, list for each stand the objectives in the prior plan applicable to the stand, report for each objective the monitoring data collected and recorded pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:3-5.11(c) during the plan period, describe the trend if any shown by the data, and assess the progress toward the objective achieved under the prior plan;

5. State whether:

i. The property includes wetlands and, if so, whether any prescriptions and practices in the plan are subject to the Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act rules at N.J.A.C. 7:7A-2.8; and

ii. Some or all of the property's forest land lies in a flood hazard area and, if so, whether any of the prescriptions and practices in the plan is subject to the Flood Hazard Area Control Act rules at N.J.A.C. 7:13-7;

6. Describe any legal constraint, such as an easement, that has the potential to affect management of the property's forest land; and

7. Describe any other factors relevant to the design of the plan, such as local considerations, economic aspects, and/or aesthetic, privacy, or safety concerns.

(c) With regard to goals, the section shall:

1. Set forth the owner's long-term goals for the property and its forest land. These shall include:

i. Ensuring the sustainability of the property's forest land;

ii. Any additional long-term stewardship goal the owner has for the forest land and its natural resources; and

iii. Any other long-term goal of the owner with respect to the property. Such goal shall be compatible with each goal identified pursuant to (c)1i and ii above; and

2. Indicate whether the owner intends to manage the property's forest land in coordination with the management of one or more neighboring properties and, if so, explain the goals of and mechanisms for such management.

(d) The section shall include the owner's acknowledgement of the obligation to carry out monitoring and recordkeeping in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:3-5.11.

(e) The plan shall indicate whether the prescriptions and practices in the plan are designed to:

1. Ensure the sustainability of the forest land; and

2. Eliminate excessive and unnecessary cutting.

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:3-5.4

Adopted by 49 N.J.R. 3824(a), effective 12/18/2017