NJAS Opinion: November, 2004
By Kathleen Bird, Policy Associate and
Eric Stiles, Vice President for Conservation & Stewardship
Deep in the heart of the nation's most densely populated
state lies an oasis of biodiversity called the Sourland Mountain
Region. Simply called "the Sourlands" by the locals, this
unspoiled landscape of forested ridges and pastoral farms
successfully has staved off development for centuries, thanks
mostly to its inhospitable soils, impenetrable rock and limited
underground water supplies. Now, we're on the brink of
determining whether the Sourlands remains an oasis or implodes
from poorly planned development.
Located roughly halfway between New York and Philadelphia and
sandwiched between the Pinelands to the south and the Highlands
to the north, the Sourlands are facing growth pressure from all
sides. In the bull's eye of a region that experienced
unprecedented growth and suburban development during the 1990s,
the Sourlands had remained pretty intact. That is changing.
The Sourland Mountain Region spans approximately 90 square
miles from the Delaware River and Lambertville to the west to
Hillsborough Township to the east. The region includes parts of
eight municipalities in three counties making conserving this
region a challenge-- East Amwell and West Amwell townships,
Lambertville and a sliver of Delaware Township in Hunterdon
County; Hopewell Borough and Hopewell Township in Mercer County
and Hillsborough and Montgomery townships in Somerset County.
Long spared from suburbanization by its inhospitable
conditions, the Sourlands have become an attractive place to
developers building for clients who want to live in a wilderness
only a half-hour from the traffic on Route 1. McMansions are
creeping up through the Valley grasslands and into the
mountain's flanks, threatening the future of the largest
unbroken forest and grasslands in central New Jersey.
Anyone who has ever hiked the trails or biked the unpaved
roads in the Sourlands knows first-hand that this place is a
special refuge. Its parks supply a world-class natural area for
families and friends to explore. The ridge and its surroundings
has been a secret getaway for those fortunate enough to
experience its magic. Aviator Charles Lindbergh sought solace
in the Sourlands, as did John Hart, who successfully hid here
from advancing British soldiers during the Revolutionary War and
later signed the Declaration of Independence. But this place of
rich history, legends and lore, heroes, poets, artists and
outlaws, has always been an extra special place for its
remarkable collection of non-human inhabitants and visitors.
The Sourlands is an essential part of the Atlantic Flyway
that has been used by migratory birds for thousands of years.
The Sourlands provides the only large forest complex remaining
in central New Jersey. It plays a large, irreplaceable role
accommodating hundreds of thousands of migrants like
black-throated blue warblers seeking food and cover on their
sojourns north and south! The forest along the slopes of the
low ridge is rich in food resources like insects and fruit that
fuel birds traveling to wintering and breeding grounds.
Dozens of Neotropical migrant species such as the scarlet
tanager also breed in the Sourlands and over winter in the
forests of Central America and South America. Equally
important, the adjacent grassland agricultural communities of
the Amwell and Hopewell Valleys constitute some of the best
remaining sites for threatened and endangered species like
Bobolinks in New Jersey which require early successional
habitat.
Over 90 percent of the region is habitat for threatened and
endangered species. Among the species are barred owl, bobcat,
bobolink, Cooper's hawk, grasshopper sparrow, savannah sparrow,
upland sandpiper and wood turtle.
The Sourlands are important for more than just birds. Vernal
ponds abound - teeming with breeding spotted salamanders and
wood frogs. The large areas of mature, unbroken forest and
perched wetlands provide the conditions needed to create the
headwaters of many area streams. The quality and quantity of
central New Jersey's drinking water supply depends on protecting
our natural resources.
Thankfully, local activists realize that the features that
make the Sourlands so special must be scrupulously protected to
ward off poorly planned development.
The Sourland Planning Council, a grassroots citizen
organization formed in 1986, is facilitating an exciting project
funded by the state's Office of Smart Growth. The work has
included creation of a natural resources inventory; hydrogeology
studies; a build-out analysis that provides a snapshot of what
the Sourlands might look like in the future; and an open space
and conservation plan. The New Jersey Audubon Society is
participating in the project and will be involved in crafting
recommendations for government at all levels to protect the
Sourlands.
The municipalities are already discussing how they can use
these important studies to implement joint land-use strategies.
This kind of regional planning is critically important.
While the Sourlands municipalities in recent years have
increased the minimum lot size for a house in the mountain's
core, they also need to revisit the appropriateness of current
zoning on the edges, which are much more vulnerable to
development pressure. Municipalities need to map and protect
critical wildlife habitat and aquifer recharge areas and
encourage clustering options that would create denser
development in appropriate locations while preserving large
swaths of forest and grassland habitat. Large-lot sprawl
scattered throughout the region will destroy habitat.
Recently, several organizations including regional nonprofit
organizations including Delaware & Raritan Greeenway and the state have made
preservation of the Sourlands ridge and Amwell and Hopewell
Valleys a high priority. But there isn't enough money and time
to buy it all up before it's too late. Additional initiatives
are needed:
- Governor Codey should issue an Executive Order outlining a
comprehensive strategy directing state agencies to protect the
Sourlands resources.
- Governor Codey should issue the long overdue threatened
and endangered species habitat protection rules.
- Government and non-profit entities should bolster their
efforts to acquire development rights.
- The Sourlands should become a focal region for federal and
state landowner incentive programs that would pay for innovative
conservation practices on private property especially on
farmland. Private landowners should be rewarded for helping
conserve our children's natural heritage. Preserving the area's
pasture and hay farming community is critical to Sourlands
conservation!
- The state should identify the Sourlands as a Special
Resource Area in the New Jersey State Development and
Redevelopment Plan.
It is important to recognize that state government alone
cannot save the Sourlands. The fate of this rare New Jersey
wilderness rests largely in the hands of local officials who can
choose to be good stewards and use all of the tools in their
land-use tool boxes, such as shrinking the size of the building
envelope on a site, adopting ordinances to protect critical
wildlife habitat and establish vegetation requirements.
The Sourlands, which had remained almost frozen in time for
centuries, are at risk from rapid poorly planned development.
Absent immediate action, the Sourlands' natural resources and
quality of life will be forever altered. The prospects appear
encouraging and all of the key ingredients for success exist.
Municipalities, working with the counties, the state and
nonprofit organizations like New Jersey Audubon Society and the
Sourland Planning Council -- while involving landowners and
other stakeholders including the general public -- can make it
work.