[Amended 4-10-1989 by Ord. No. 7-1989; 6-12-1989 by Ord. No. 19-1989; 7-28-1997 by Ord. No. 10-1997; 4-22-2013 by Ord. No. 005-2013]
A. Permit required. No forestry shall be carried out by any person unless a permit for such an activity has been issued by the Town Zoning Officer. Notwithstanding this requirement, no such permits shall be required for the following forestry activities:
(1) Normal and customary forestry practices on residentially improved parcels of land that are five acres or less in size;
(2) Tree harvesting, provided that no more than one cord of wood per five acres of land is harvested in any one year and that no more than five cords of wood are harvested from the entire parcel in any one year;
(3) Tree planting, provided that the area to be planted does not exceed five acres in any one year, no soil disturbance occurs other than that caused by the planting activity and no trees other than those authorized by N.J.A.C. 7:50-6.25 are to be planted;
(4) Forest stand improvement designed to selectively thin trees and brush, provided that no clearing or soil disturbance occurs and that the total land area on the parcel in which the activity occurs does not exceed five acres in any one year; and
(5) Prescribed burning and the clearing and maintaining of fire breaks.
B. Forestry application requirements. The information in Subsection B(1) or (2) below shall be submitted to the Town Zoning Officer prior to the issuance of any forestry permit:
(1) For forestry activities on a parcel of land enrolled in the New Jersey Forest Stewardship Program, a copy of the approved New Jersey Forest Stewardship Plan. This document shall serve as evidence of the completion of an application with the Pinelands Commission as well as evidence that the activities are consistent with the standards of the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan. No certificate of filing from the Pinelands Commission shall be required.
(2) For all other forestry applications:
(a) The applicant's name and address and interest in the subject parcel;
(b) The owner's name and address, if different from the applicant's, and the owner's signed consent to the filing of the application;
(c) The description, including block and lot designation and street address, if any, of the subject parcel;
(d) A description of all existing uses of the subject parcel;
(e) A brief written statement generally describing the proposed forestry operation;
(f) A USGS Quadrangle map, or copy thereof, and a copy of the municipal tax map sheet on which the boundaries of the subject parcel, the Pinelands management area designation and the municipal zoning designation are shown;
(g) A forestry management plan that includes, as appropriate:
[1] A cover page for the plan containing:
[a] The name, mailing address and telephone number of the owner of the subject parcel;
[b] The municipality and county in which the subject parcel is located;
[c] The block and lot designation and street address, if any, of the subject parcel;
[d] The name and address of the forester who prepared the plan, if not prepared by the owner of the subject parcel; and
[e] The date the plan was prepared, subsequent revision dates and the period of time the plan is intended to cover;
[2] A clear and concise statement of the owner's objectives for undertaking the proposed forestry activities, including a description of the short- (five years) and long-term (20 years) objectives for all proposed silvicultural techniques that will be used to manage the parcel;
[3] A description of the existing conditions of the subject parcel and of each forest stand in which a proposed activity, prescription or practice will occur. These stand descriptions shall include photographs of each stand taken at eye level showing the location of all Pinelands Native Forest Types, as identified at N.J.A.C. 7:50-6.43, and shall be keyed to an activity map that shall include, as appropriate, the following information:
[a] The number of acres;
[b] The general condition and quality of each stand;
[c] The overall site quality, relative to the management goals and objectives identified in Subsection (2)(g)[2] above;
[d] An inventory and map of Pinelands Native Forest Types with Native Forest Types broken into "stands," including information on type, size and volume by species;
[e] The age of representative trees;
[f] The species composition, including over story, under story, ground layer structure and composition;
[g] The stand cohort composition;
[h] The percent cover;
[i] The basal area;
[j] The structure, including age classes, diameter breast height (DBH) classes and crown classes;
[k] The condition and species composition of advanced regeneration when applicable;
[l] A stocking table showing the stocking levels, growth rates and volume;
[m] Projections of intended future stand characteristics at 10-, 20-, and 40-year intervals;
[n] A description of the forestry activities, silvicultural prescriptions, management activities and practices proposed during the permit period and the acreage proposed for each activity. These may include, but are not necessarily limited to, a description of:
[i] Stand improvement practices;
[ii] Site preparation practices;
[iii] Harvesting practices;
[iv] Regeneration and reforestation practices;
[v] Improvements, including road construction, stream crossings, landings, loading areas and skid trails;
[vi] Herbicide treatments;
[vii] Silvicultural treatment alternatives;
[viii] If planting will occur to accomplish reforestation, the application shall include seed sources records, if such records are available;
[ix] Implementation instructions; and
[x] Measures that will be taken to prevent the potential spread of exotic plant species or Phragmites into wetlands; and
[o] A description, if appropriate, of the forest products to be harvested, including volume expressed in cords and board feet; diameter breast height (DBH) classes and average diameter; age; heights; and number of trees per acre; and
[4] A map of the entire parcel which includes the following:
[a] The owner's name, address and the date the map was prepared;
[b] An arrow designating the north direction;
[c] A scale which is not smaller than one inch equals 2,000 feet or larger than one inch equals 400 feet;
[d] The location of all property lines;
[e] A delineation of the physical features such as roads, streams and structures;
[f] The identification of soil types (a separate map may be used for this purpose);
[g] A map inset showing the location of the parcel in relation to the local area;
[h] Clear location of the area and acreage in which each proposed activity, prescription or practice will occur. If shown on other than the property map, the map or maps shall note the scale, which shall not be smaller than one inch equals 2,000 feet or larger than one inch equals 400 feet, and shall be appropriately keyed to the property map; and
[i] A legend defining the symbols appearing on the map.
(i) A cultural resource survey documenting cultural resources on those portions of the parcel where ground disturbance due to site preparation or road construction will occur and a detailed description of the measures proposed by the applicant to treat those cultural resources in accordance with § 175-107;
(j) A statement identifying the type, location and frequency of any proposed herbicide treatments and how such treatments will comply with the standards set forth in Subsection C(9)(b) below;
(k) A statement identifying the specific steps to be taken to ensure that trees or areas to be harvested are properly identified so as to ensure that only those trees intended for harvesting are harvested;
(l) Written comments from the New Jersey State Forester concerning the extent to which the proposed forestry activities are consistent with the guidelines provided in the New Jersey Forestry and Wetlands Best Management Practices Manual developed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, dated October 1995, as amended. Any such comments which indicate that the proposed activities are not consistent with said Manual must be addressed by the applicant in terms of their potential impact on the standards set forth in Subsection D. below; and
(m) A Certificate of Filing from the Pinelands Commission issued pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:50-4.34; and
(n) When prior approval for the forestry activities has been granted by the Zoning Officer or other town approval agency, a letter from the Pinelands Commission indicating that the prior approval has been reviewed pursuant to § 175-60.
C. Forestry standards. Forestry operations shall be approved only if the applicant can demonstrate that the standards set forth below are met:
(1) All forestry activities shall serve to maintain Pinelands native forest types, including those which are locally characteristic, except in those stands where other forest types exist;
(2) Any newly developed access to lands proposed for harvesting shall avoid wetland areas except as absolutely necessary to harvest wetlands species or to otherwise gain access to a harvesting site;
(3) The following actions shall be required to encourage the establishment, restoration or regeneration of Atlantic White Cedar in cedar and hardwood swamps:
(a) Clear cutting cedar and managing slash;
(b) Controlling competition by other plant species;
(c) Utilizing fencing and other retardants, where necessary, to protect cedar from over browsing;
(d) Utilizing existing streams as cutting boundaries, where practical;
(e) Harvesting during dry periods or when the ground is frozen; and
(f) Utilizing the least intrusive harvesting techniques, including the use of winches, corduroy roads and helicopters, where practical.
(4) All forestry activities and practices shall be designed and carried out so as to comply with the standards set forth in §§ 175-102 and 175-136A. The species accounts provided in the "Recommended Forestry Management Practices Report," Appendix I - Endangered Animals, dated March 2006, as amended and supplemented and available at the principal office of the Commission or at www.nj.gov/pinelands, may be utilized as a guide for meeting these standards;
(5) All forestry activities and practices shall be designed and carried out so as to comply with the standards for the land application of waste set forth in N.J.A.C. 7:50-6.79, except as expressly authorized in this section;
(6) All forestry activities and practices shall be designed and carried out so as to comply with the standards for the protection of historic, archaeological and cultural resources set forth in § 175-107;
(7) A vegetated streamside management zone shall be maintained or established adjacent to streams, ponds, lakes and marshes, except that no streamside management zone shall be required when Atlantic White Cedar is proposed to be harvested, established, restored or regenerated. The streamside management zone shall be at least 25 feet in width. Where soils are severely erodible, slopes exceed 10% or streamside vegetation is not vigorous, the streamside management zone shall be increased up to a maximum of 70 feet to buffer the water body from adjacent forestry activities;
(8) Stream crossings, access roads, timber harvesting, skid trails, log decks, portable sawmill sites, site preparation, and reforestation shall be designed and carried out so as to:
(a) Minimize changes to surface and ground water hydrology;
(b) Minimize changes to temperature and other existing surface water quality and conditions;
(c) Prevent unnecessary soil erosion, siltation and sedimentation; and
(d) Minimize unnecessary disturbances to aquatic and forest habitats.
(9) The following standards shall apply to silvicultural practices for site preparation, either before or after harvesting:
(a) In areas with slopes of greater than 10%, an undisturbed buffer strip of at least 25 feet in width shall be maintained along roads during site preparation to catch soil particles;
(b) Herbicide treatments shall be permitted, provided that:
[1] The proposed treatment is identified in the forestry application submitted to the Zoning Officer pursuant to Subsection B(2)(j) above;
[2] Control of competitive plant species is clearly necessary;
[3] Control of competitive plant species by other, non-chemical means is not practical;
[4] All chemicals shall be expressly labeled for forestry use and shall be used and mixed in a manner that is consistent with relevant State and Federal requirements; and
[5] In Pine-Shrub Oak Native Forest Types, herbicide treatments shall only be permitted as a method to temporarily suppress shrub-oak under story in order to facilitate pine regeneration. All such herbicide treatments shall be applied in a targeted manner so that there will be no significant reduction in tree or shrub-oak re-sprouting outside those areas subject to the herbicide treatment;
(c) Broadcast scarification and mechanical weeding shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types;
(d) Disking shall be permitted, provided that:
[1] It shall not be permitted in Pine Plains Native Forest Types;
[2] Disking shall only be permitted in Pine-Shrub Oak Native Forest Types as a method to temporarily suppress shrub-oak under story in order to facilitate pine regeneration, and shall be limited as follows:
[a] Disking may occur one time during the first year of the establishment of a stand to assure the successful growth of pine seedlings and may be repeated one time during the second year of the growth of the stand only in areas where pine seedling establishment has not successfully occurred; and
[b] Only single-pass disking, which penetrates the soil no deeper than six inches, shall be permitted.
[3] It shall not occur in wetlands, except as may be necessary to establish, restore or regenerate Atlantic White Cedar. When so used, disking shall be limited to shrub-dominated parcels and recently abandoned agricultural lands; and
[4] It shall follow land contours when slopes are discernible;
(e) Root raking shall be permitted, provided that:
[1] It shall not be permitted in Pine-Shrub Oak Native Forest Types or Pine Plains Native Forest Types;
[2] When used to establish, restore or regenerate Atlantic White Cedar, root raking shall be limited to shrub-dominated parcels and recently abandoned agricultural lands; and
[3] Root raking debris shall not be piled in wetlands;
(f) Bedding shall be permitted only in recently abandoned, cultivated wetlands where there are no established Pinelands Native Forest Types; and
(g) Drum chopping shall be permitted, provided that:
[1] It shall not be permitted in Pine Plains Native Forest Types except to create road shoulder fuel breaks, which shall be limited to 25 feet in width, or to create scattered early successional habitats under two acres in size;
[2] It shall not be permitted in wetlands, except as may be necessary to establish, restore or regenerate Atlantic White Cedar. When so used, drum chopping shall be limited to shrub-dominated parcels and recently abandoned agricultural lands; and
[3] It shall adhere to the following procedures:
[a] No more than two passes shall be permitted except to create scattered early successional habitats under two acres in size;
[b] Drums shall remain unfilled when used during the dormant season;
[c] Chop up and down the slope on a parcel so the depressions made by the cleats and chopper blades run parallel to the contour of the land to help reduce the occurrence of channeled surface erosion;
[d] Chop so the depressions made by the cleats and chopper blades run parallel to a wetland or water body; and
[e] Avoid short-radius, 180-degree turns at the end of each straight pass.
(10) The following standards shall apply to silvicultural practices for harvesting:
(a) Clear cutting shall be permitted, provided that:
[1] It shall not be permitted in Pine Plains Native Forest Types;
[2] It shall be limited to 300 acres or 5% of a parcel, whichever is greater, during any permit period;
[3] A 50-foot-wide buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall be maintained between any clear-cut and the parcel boundaries;
[4] A buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall also be maintained to separate each 25-acre or larger clear-cut from other 25-acre or larger clear cuts, coppice cuts and seed tree cuts that occur within a 15-year period. The buffer strip separating two 25-acre harvests shall be 50 feet in width and, for a larger harvest, shall increase in width by one foot for each acre of that harvest above 25, to a maximum of 300 feet in width;
[5] Where present on a parcel, a minimum of 18 dead snags per acre of at least 10 inches diameter breast height (DBH) and six feet in height shall be left on the parcel for a minimum of five years; and
[6] The area of the parcel subject to the clear-cut shall have contoured edges unless the boundary of the clear-cut serves as a firebreak in which case straight edges may be used;
(b) Coppicing shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types, provided that:
[1] It shall be limited to 500 acres in size or 10% of a parcel, whichever is greater, during any permit period;
[2] A 50-foot-wide buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall be maintained between any coppice cut and the parcel boundaries;
[3] A buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall also be maintained to separate each 25-acre or larger coppice cut from other 25-acre or larger clear cuts, coppice cuts and seed tree cuts that occur within a 15-year period. The buffer strip separating two 25-acre harvests shall be 50 feet in width and, for a larger harvest, shall increase in width by one foot for each acre of that harvest above 25, to a maximum of 300 feet in width;
[4] Where present on a parcel, a minimum of 18 dead snags per acre of at least 10 inches DBH and six feet in height shall be left on the parcel for a minimum of five years; and
[5] The area of the parcel subject to the coppice cut shall have contoured edges unless the boundary of the coppice cut serves as a firebreak in which case straight edges may be used;
(c) Seed tree cutting shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types, provided that:
[1] It shall be limited to 500 acres in size or 10% of a parcel, whichever is greater, during any permit period;
[2] A 50-foot-wide buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall be maintained between any seed tree cut and the parcel boundaries;
[3] A buffer strip, in which only periodic pruning and thinning may occur, shall also be maintained to separate each 25-acre or larger seed tree cut from other 25-acre or larger clear cuts, coppice cuts and seed tree cuts that occur within a 15-year period. The buffer strip separating two 25-acre harvests shall be 50 feet in width and, for a larger harvest, shall increase in width by one foot for each acre of that harvest above 25, to a maximum of 300 feet in width;
[4] Where present on a parcel, a minimum of 18 dead snags per acre of at least 10 inches DBH and six feet in height shall be left on the parcel for a minimum of five years;
[5] The area of the parcel subject to the seed tree cut shall have contoured edges unless the boundary of the seed tree cut serves as a firebreak in which case straight edges may be used;
[6] Dominant residual seed trees shall be retained at a distribution of at least seven trees per acre; and
[7] Residual seed trees shall be distributed evenly throughout the parcel; and
(d) Shelter wood cutting, group selection and individual selection shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types.
(11) The following standards shall apply to silvicultural practices for forest regeneration:
(a) Natural regeneration shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types and shall be required in the Pine Plains Native Forest Type, except as provided in Subsection (11)(b) below; and
(b) Artificial regeneration shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types provided that:
[1] The use of non-native cuttings, seedlings or seeds shall not be permitted;
[2] The use of hybrid cuttings, seedlings or seeds shall be permitted if it can be demonstrated that the cutting is from a locally native, naturally occurring hybrid which will be planted within its natural range and habitat;
[3] Cuttings, seedlings or seeds shall be collected and utilized so as to ensure genetic diversity; and
[4] When used in Pine Plains Native Forest Types, artificial regeneration shall only be permitted to restore drastically disturbed sites if seeds or seedlings from the immediate vicinity have been collected from local, genetically similar sources.
(12) Following site preparation and harvesting activities, slash shall either be retained in piles on the parcel, distributed throughout the parcel, removed from the parcel or burned.
(13) Thinning shall be permitted in all Pinelands Native Forest Types, including that which serves to maintain an under story of native plants and/or manage stand composition, density, growth and spatial heterogeneity.
(14) A copy of the forestry permit issued by the Town Zoning Officer shall be conspicuously posted on the parcel which is the site of the forestry activity.
D. Forestry permit procedures.
(1) Applications for forestry permits shall be submitted to the Zoning Officer and shall be accompanied by an application fee of $25.
(2) Within 14 days of receipt of an application, the Zoning Officer shall determine whether the application is complete and, if necessary, notify the applicant in writing of any additional information which is necessary to complete the application. Should the Zoning Officer fail to make such a determination within 14 days, the application shall be considered to be complete as of the 15th day following its submission.
(3) Within 45 days of determining an application to be complete pursuant to Subsection D(2) above, or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant, the Zoning Officer shall issue a forestry permit if the activities proposed in the application comply with the standards in Subsection C above or disapprove any application which does not meet the requirements of Subsection C above. Any such notice of disapproval shall specifically set forth the deficiencies of the application.
(4) Upon receipt of a notice of disapproval pursuant to Subsection D(3) above, the applicant shall have 30 days in which to correct the deficiencies and submit any necessary revisions to the application to the Zoning Officer for review. The Zoning Officer shall review the revised application to verify conformity with the standards in Subsection C above and shall, within 14 days of receipt of the revised application, issue a forestry permit or disapprove the application pursuant to Subsection D(3) above.
(5) Failure of the Zoning Officer to act within the time period prescribed in Subsection D(3) and (4) above shall constitute approval of the forestry application as submitted. At the request of the applicant, a certificate as to the failure of the Zoning Officer to act shall be issued by the municipality and it shall be sufficient in lieu of the written endorsement or other evidence of municipal approval required herein.
(6) In reviewing and issuing permits for forestry applications, the Zoning Officer shall also comply with the Pinelands Area notice and review procedures set forth in §§ 175-60D through G.
(7) Forestry permits shall be valid for a period of 10 years. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit any person from securing additional permits, provided that the requirements of this chapter and the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan are met.
E. Administrative fees. Upon the issuance of a forestry permit pursuant to Subsection D(3) above, the applicant shall be required to pay of a sum of $250 which shall serve as reimbursement for any administrative costs incurred by the municipality during the ten-year permit period. The applicant shall not be subject to any additional fees or escrow requirements for the duration of the forestry permit.
F. Notification of harvesting. No harvesting shall be commenced until the applicant has provided the Zoning Officer with 72 hours' written notice of the intention to begin harvesting operations.
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