The New Jersey Pinelands, also known as the Pinelands National Reserve (PNR), was established as the nation's first National Reserve in 1978. The PNR is home to scores of rare plant and animal species, and houses the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system, one of the largest fresh water systems in the country at an estimated 17 trillion gallons of water. Approximately 1.1 million acres large, the PNR is the largest body of open space on the Mid-Atlantic seaboard between Richmond and Boston, and is also recognized by the United Nations as a Biosphere Reserve.
At 125,000 acres, Wharton State Forest is the largest unit in the NJ State Park System to make up the PNR. Wharton Forest protects rare plants and animals, some found nowhere else in the world. It also encompasses some of the most remote areas in New Jersey. However, this beautiful area is under serious threat, and we need your action today in order to preserve it.
The duty of the NJ DEP Division of Parks and Forestry is to maintain healthy biologically diverse ecosystems to sustain wildlife. In August of this year, the Division of Parks and Forestry State Park Service launched a draft Motorized Access Plan (MAP) to encourage public education of Wharton State Forest’s important biodiversity and responsible motorized vehicle use. MAP is a map and brochure that designates 225 miles of established road to passive motorized vehicle access and provides information about Wharton Forest’s ecological treasures and how they can be damaged by irresponsible off-roading. We need your help now because, due to the uproar and pressures of off-road motorist individuals, groups, and clubs, the NJ DEP is backing off its proposed Motorized Access Plan.
I understand that the pressures the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection faces from groups in opposition of the Motorized Access Plan is causing you and the Department a lot of stress these days. Please do not give in to these unwarranted demands of the public.
I want to encourage you to uphold your position, and the role of the Department, to protect New Jersey's natural environment. Laws already exist to prohibit recreational motorized vehicle use in areas like Wharton State Forest, but law enforcement currently is not strong enough to uphold these laws. MAP is a good way to provide public education of Wharton Forest's natural treasures, and the damage that it sustains from recreational motorized vehicle use.
MAP was a good idea when it was first formed, and should not be taken down by those who have no consideration for our environment, our laws, our taxpayers' money, and the world of generations to come.
Please continue to fight the good fight.
