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A 6093

Relates to prohibiting the release of certain balloons

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Tommy John Schiavoni

Designates municipalities hosting critical headwaters as headwater guardians to protect drinking water through planning, protections, and interagency coordination.

REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
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Bill Summary · A 6093

Summary of New Jersey Bill A 6093 (Relates to Prohibiting the Release of Certain Balloons)

Note: This summary reflects the introduced version and the provisions described in the bill text provided. The bill is currently referred to the Environmental Conservation/Environment committee.

Purpose and Context

  • The bill, titled “An Act concerning critical headwaters and supplementing Title 58 of the Revised Statutes,” aims to identify and protect municipalities that host critical waterhead resources contributing to the state’s drinking water supply.
  • It designates certain headwaters as “critical headwaters” and creates a formal role for municipalities hosting those headwaters as “headwater guardians.”
  • The approach links watershed protection with planning processes, climate resilience, and interagency coordination to safeguard clean drinking water.

Key Provisions

  • Definitions
    • Critical headwater: A headwater designated by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) as critical.
    • Highlands Region and Pinelands area: Defined by existing statutory regions in New Jersey.
  • Identification and designation process
    • DEP must within 1 year develop a process to identify/ designate municipalities with critical headwaters as headwater guardians.
    • Designation criteria include headwaters that provide a primary drinking water source for at least 1,000,000 residents (per the most recent federal decennial census) and considerations of watershed significance, water quality, wetlands, buffers, and location within sensitive planning regions.
    • Designation must align with flood, stormwater, wetlands standards, statewide water supply plans, and federal Clean Water Act assessments.
    • DEP must publicly disclose the designation process and make GIS/data used available.
  • Immediate designation
    • Within 30 days after establishing the designation process, DEP must designate municipalities containing critical headwaters as headwater guardians and publish/update the list online.
  • Protective measures
    • Within 6 months of designation, DEP must determine whether environmental protections are needed (e.g., enhanced stormwater management, groundwater recharge standards, impervious area limits, vegetative buffers).
    • Protections, if adopted, must be published online.
  • Public participation
    • All headwater guardian designations and environmental protections are subject to a public comment period of at least 30 days.
  • Planning and governance
    • Headwater guardian status and protections are recognized as material planning factors under the Municipal Land Use Law and the State Development and Redevelopment Plan.
  • Programs and funding
    • DEP may establish programs to highlight exemplary guardian municipalities.
    • DEP may grant or provide technical assistance to guardian municipalities for watershed protection.
  • Reporting
    • Every two years after enactment (and annually thereafter), DEP must prepare a report for the Governor and Legislature detailing: all guardian designations, required protections, recommendations to improve the designation process, interagency coordination, and measurable outcomes (e.g., pollutant reductions, flood damages avoided, riparian buffers preserved).

Designation Process and Timeline

  • Within 1 year: DEP develops the process to identify/ designate headwater guardians.
  • Within 30 days of process establishment: Dep designate municipalities with critical headwaters as guardians; publish list online.
  • Within 6 months of designation: DEP determines necessary environmental protections (if any).
  • Ongoing: Public comment on designations and protections; periodic reporting every two years (and annually as applicable).

Affected Parties and Impacts

  • Municipalities hosting critical headwaters: Recognized as headwater guardians with potential planning considerations and protections.
  • Residents: Potential improvements in drinking water protection and climate resilience related to watershed stewardship.
  • State agencies: Increased interagency coordination (e.g., with Board of Public Utilities, Department of Transportation, Department of Community Affairs) and alignment with water supply plans and environmental regulations.
  • Local land-use planning: Guardian status becomes a material planning factor in land-use decisions.

Effective Date

  • The act takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Related Legislation

  • Companion bills and related bills noted (e.g., S 4897; S 153) indicating cross-chamber consideration.

If you’d like, I can tailor this summary to a specific audience (e.g., local government readers vs. environmental advocates) or add a quick comparison with existing watershed protections in New Jersey.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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