TRENTON, NJ – Only in New Jersey, folks. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the state’s environmental watchdog agency, has just fined itself for violating its own regulations at a South Jersey Wildlife Management Area.
The incident took place after the agency clear-cut trees in the Glassboro Wildlife Management Area.
The clearing took place in February after more than 14 acres of trees were cleared in a state-protected wetlands area at the WMA.
State workers cut down a mature forest in a wetlands zone that was home to native species, an act that could lead to big fines if a private entity or individual did it.
At this time, it’s unclear how the state will proceed against…itself.
“This week, the department’s Bureau of Coastal and Land Use Compliance and Enforcement issued a notice of violation to the Division of Fish and Wildlife for illegally clearing 15 acres, which included protected wetlands andthe areas that border them,” the DEP said in a statement.
The work appears to have been related to a plan to create a habitat area for the American Woodcock. That plan was scheduled to begin on February 1st to include 21 acres of meadow and moist soils.
The DEP clear-cut the trees to make a habitat suitable for plants and flowers.
Ironically, in a statement about the project, the DEP stated, “New Jersey is home to a high biodiversity of wildlife, with each species relying on its respective habitat niche to survive. In a setting free from human development, natural disturbances maintain a high variety of habitat types to support these species. In New Jersey these natural disturbances are often reasonably suppressed to protect human life and property. Fish and Wildlife has taken a proactive stance on habitat management to replicate the presence of natural disturbances and ensure all of New Jersey’s wildlife has suitable habitat to thrive.”
That was before they clear cut 14 acres of woodlands, destroying the natural habitat for owls and other native species in the area.
Of course, the DEP did not self-report the incident. They were notified by multiple complaints from environment groups including NJ Conservation Foundation, Pinelands Preservation Alliance, South Jersey Land and Water Trust, and Citizens United to Protect the Maurice River.