The Public Was Shut Out, But Hunters Were Consulted In DEP’s Clearcut Logging Plan In Glassboro WMA

Another Example Of Agency Capture By The Hunting Lobby

BTW, DEP will conduct the same clearcuts along 13 miles of Pinelands Roads

DEP documents reveal that DEP consulted with the NJ State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs in developing and vetting their Glassboro Wildlife Management Area clearcut.

But the public was completely shut out.

(DEP did not even deploy their sham “14 step process” for forest management plans, which was developed in response to public outrage over the joint DEP/NJ Audubon logging project at the Sparta Mt. WMA.)

A few NJ insider conservation groups – who have long been a part of the problem – are throwing somewhat of a hissy fit over DEP’s lack of consultation with them (and the public) in the Glassboro WMA illegal clearcut: (NJ Spotlight):

“This should never have happened, so they must also take steps to improve their clearly inadequate process and meaningfully engage the public,’’ Gilbert said. “No significant projects should move forward without being subject to comprehensive review with public input. Our public lands deserve better.’’

These hypocritical groups themselves are part of the problem, for two primary reasons:

First, they have personal, professional, and organizational common interests with the DEP, play the inside game with DEP, publicly support DEP (while withholding criticism); deploy some of the same destructive management practices as DEP.

Here’s how that cozy relationship actually worked in this case (see this Feb. 24 friendly email from Emile DeVito NJCF to DEP Assistant Commissioner Dave Golden and note how Emile effectively runs interference and puts Emile in the role of intermediary between local citizens who discovered the illegal clearcut and the DEP. Note also the exclusive concern with process, not clearcutting:

Second, because they share some of the same scientific and policy views about wildlife, wildfire, and forest management and cultivate partnerships with the hunting lobby and rarely, if ever, criticize them or their undue influence on DEP management decisions. (see:

• Forests Are Being Destroyed and ‘Nature Lovers’ Are Helping

[Note: For those who like to read the peer reviewed published science to understand exactly what’s going on here, see:

• Forest-clearing to create early-successional habitats: Questionable benefits, significant costs

So, you will not hear any specific criticism of DEP for consulting with the NJ State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs (NJSFSC) or the abusive undue influence of the NJSFSC on DEP.

In an October 3, 2022 friendly “Hey Tom” email from Tyler Kinney, DEP Habitat Planner in charge of the project, DEP provided a copy of the Glassboro WMA clearcut plan and requested “feedback” from Tom Weeast, (at his work email, Lake Ave. Autobody) the Gloucester County Federation of NJSFSC: (and there is a Doodle meeting event as well with unknown participants. I filed another OPRA for them too):

Substantively, DEP documents show that the DEP made the hunting objectives absolutely clear in the “science” they relied on from a paper by the US Fish and Wildlife Service: American Woodcock – Population Status, 2022