Millburn Climate Action started this petition to NJ Watershed Property Review Board, DEP, Office of Transactions and Public Land Jessica Patterson.

THE ISSUE
New Jersey American Water (NJAW) is currently trying to sell 8 acres of mixed forest, field, and wetlands they own to a private housing developer. This land is located along JFK Parkway in Millburn Township (Block 5302, Lot 5). In order for NJAW to be able to do this, they need to obtain an exemption from the Watershed Protection and Moratorium Act. On May 11, 2023, they will appear before the NJ Watershed Property Review Board and make a case for this exemption. The purpose of the Watershed Protection and Moratorium Act is to protect water quality and encourage open space preservation. If the Board grants NJAW an exemption from this Act, they will be doing the exact opposite of what the Act intends to do, which is to protect our watershed. 

FLOODING
Millburn, in fact the state of New Jersey, cannot bear the loss of any more wetlands or permeable cover. Building on this property destroys vital flood zone wetlands and greenspace which are proven to be critical for floodwater management. Considering the heavy flooding Millburn is continually subjected to - and which will only increase under global climate change -  we cannot risk our natural water control systems. As Shawn LaTourette, the Commissioner for the NJ Department of Environmental Protection has stated, "water needs somewhere to go", and if this land gets paved over, water will have nowhere to go other than into the streets. 

BIRDS & ANIMALS
This land is zoned as conservation land, is a flood zone and home to numerous birds and animals, including the federally endangered Indiana bat, and forms a portion of the critical stepping stone system defined by CHANJ for habitat connectivity. 

WETLANDS & TREES
This land contains precious wetlands and grass and tree cover, which are critical for protecting biodiversity and flooding prevention. Flooding is a critical concern for Millburn, which is continually impacted by heavy flooding due to extreme weather and climate change.

DRINKING WATER
This reservoir not only supplies drinking water to the 20,000 residents of Millburn, but to 31 other suburban and urban towns where more than 100,000 people live.

To protect our drinking water, to prevent flooding, and to conserve our precious wetlands, we must act NOW to STOP developers from bypassing environmental protection laws! If you do NOT want this land to be sold to a developer, then please help to STOP this exemption by signing this Petition!