Highlands “harder on some than others.”

From the Daily Record:

Environmentalists push for changes to Highlands plan

A dozen area environmental leaders during a news conference Monday called for changes in the proposed Highlands Regional Master Plan to address water deficits in the region.

Julia Somers, executive director of the New Jersey Highlands Coalition, said the Great Brook watershed, like all five of the streams that feed the Great Swamp, has a water deficit, meaning more water is used than is replaced.

The swamp forms the headwaters of the Passaic River, which is a public water supply for millions of North Jersey residents.

Water deficits were identified in 110 of the 183 subwatersheds cited in the master plan, the environmentalists said.
…
Somers said the environmental groups want the plan to be amended in a way to ensure that the water deficits already identified will not be made worse once the master plan is in place.

She said the group’s goals are to have a clear hierarchy of natural resource protection written into the master plan, to avoid or minimize degradation, and to mitigate any natural resource losses.

The concern is that even if the master plan went into effect now, 20,000 housing units could be built in the Highlands Preservation zone.

David Pringle, executive director of the New Jersey Environmental Federation, said that the concern is not the impact of single projects, but the cumulative effect of all the development on the water supply.
…
Morris Township Councilman Ron Goldman said the Highlands Act is a reminder that regional planning needs to be implemented to reach identifiable, agreed-upon goals.

“Rivers and highways don’t stop at municipal borders,” he said. “Our needs for safe, affordable homes and businesses, and ample clean water don’t stop at local political boundaries. The (Highlands Act) is reminding us to be fair and unselfish, because everyone else needs what we need. New regulations often interfere with ‘as is’ and change comes hard, and is harder on some than others.”