Murphy DEP Rammed Through Controversial Pinelands Logging Plan To Evade Pending “No Net Loss” Of Trees Policy

Pinelands Commissioner Lohbauer Exposes The Real DEP Motivation

Murphy is strong arming the Pinelands Commission Just as Bad as Christie

The people who love the Pinelands must contact Gov. Murphy (609-292-6000) and demand that he veto the minutes of the Pinelands Commission to block implementation of this plan. This must happen soon, before Nov. 21.

According to NJ Pinelands Commissioner Mark Lohbauer, the Murphy DEP rammed though approval of their controversial logging plan to avoid pending new requirements that would impose a “no net loss” of trees policy.

The Murphy administration put a full court press on the Commission to approve the plan – which would cut over 2.4 million trees, “thin” 1,300 acres, and create a 13 mile 50 foot wide clearcut called a “firebreak” – including a letter from DEP Commissioner LaTourette that both the Commission and DEP have kept secret and refuse to divulge.

Controversial recent Murphy political appointments to the Commission voted to approve the DEP plan, thus exposing their loyalty to the Gov. over protection of the Pinelands.

According to Pinelands Commissioner Lohbauer, DEP’s plan could never be feasible or approved under the pending Pinelands Commission’s “no net loss” of trees policy.

It would be cost prohibitive if not technically infeasible for DEP to mitigate the cutting of 2.4 million trees in the Pinelands – land availability alone could constrain a 1,300 acre reforestation mitigation project.

In a scathing criticism of DEP’s plan in which Lohbauer explained in detail why he voted NO to stop the DEP logging plan, he wrote: (scroll down to point #10)

At the Pinelands Commission, we are in the process of deliberating a “no net loss” policy for trees which, although not yet in place, would be completely contradicted by this project. 

In the end, the injury to the carbon sequestering ability of this forest was my primary objection to this project.

Lohbauer is exercising exactly the same leadership and integrity as when he publicly explained why he voted NO on the controversial South Jersey Gas pipeline through Pinelands forests advanced by the Christie administration.

Obviously, DEP rammed this project through the Pinelands Commission before the “no net loss” policy could be adopted.

In addition to evading the pending Pinelands “no net loss” policy, the DEP logging plan conflicts with DEP’s own climate science regarding the need to increase carbon sequestration and storage in NJ’s forests (see Chapter 7 on Carbon Sequestration).

DEP has yet to adopt policies and regulations to implement their science and recommendations on carbon sequestration and forestry. But it is highly unlikely that any new DEP climate policy on forestry would allow the massive logging DEP just rammed through in the Pinelands.

Finally, the DEP’s logging plan also conflicts with the likely policy and legislative recommendations on forestry management, climate, and logging public lands of Senator Smith’s Forestry Task Force.

Gov. Christie was correctly denounced by Pinelands supporters for politicizing and strong arming the Pinelands Commission to ram through extremely destructive projects like the South Jersey Gas Pipeline.

Now, Gov. Murphy is doing EXACTLY the same thing – yet the watchdogs in the conservation and environmental communities are not barking, they are cheerleading in support of the Gov. and DEP.

The timing of this DEP logging scheme with respect to huge pending changes in climate and forestry policy – alone  – should have been sufficient reason for the Pinelands Commission to reject the DEP logging plan.

The DEP logging plan should never have been approved and the DEP and their cheerleaders in the conservation community should the ashamed of themselves.

The people who love the Pinelands must contact Gov. Murphy (609-292-6000) and demand that he veto the minutes of the Pinelands Commission to block implementation of this plan. This must happen soon, before Nov. 21.