Boat Lifts & Boat Ramps, are access points for the personal watercraft of residents to New Jersey's valuable recreation opportunities on our lakes, ponds, resevoirs, rivers, and bays. Although being areas of recreational opportunities, the areas where boat ramps and lifts are placed at the interface of land and water, are often located in (special areas) [\\dep-tcshared\shared\lum\LUR\WebDev\specialareas.html] of the State that are regulated by the Department.
Activities, including Boat Lifts & Boat Ramps, that may disturb special areas of the State regulated by the Department, may require an approval from the Division prior to construction. An area containing sensitive aquatic species for example, may be irreparably damaged by such activities. It is important therefore to closely examine a proposed project relative to the sensitive areas which may be impacted.
Boat Lifts & Boat Ramps may require multiple approvals from the Division, depending on the special areas impacted by the project. If you don't know what special areas are on your site, please check out the before you buy, before you build section of this website for guidance on determining if your site has one of these regulated special areas on it.
For information on Land Use permit requirements for bank stabilization within specific "special areas", please click on each of the tabs above.*
*For impacts to Streams, Rivers, Lakes, Ponds, Flood Plains, Flood Way, Riparian Zones and other water body related areas, please click on the "Flood Hazard" tab. For impacts to special coastal areas, please click on the "Coastal" tab. For impacts to Freshwater Wetlands, click on the "Freshwater Wetlands" tab. Information on Tidelands can be found in the "Tidelands" tab.
The construction of a boat ramp or lift within freshwater wetlands, transition areas, and/or State open waters requires a Freshwater Wetlands (FWW) permit. Two FWW General Permits (GP) are available for this activity, a GP1 and a GP19.
General Permit 1 - Maintenance and repair of existing features - May be obtained if repairs are being made to an exsiting boat ramp or lift, or install of a boat ramp, lift, or any access point to the open water is being constructed within the landward side of a man-made bulkhead and not increasing distrubances to freshwater wetlands, transition areas, or State open waters.
General Permit - 19 Docks and Piers - Can be obtained for activities in freshwater wetlands, transition areas, or State open water if the following;
- The proposed boat ramp is for use by the public. Private boat ramps are not covered by this general permit.
- The activites proposed shall disturb no more than one tenth of an acre of frehswater wetlands, transition area, or State open waters.
If the project for boat ramp or lift cannot comply with the criteria for a GP-1 or a GP19, the applicant would need to apply for an Individual Permit (IP). An IP application would need to include a description as to why the project cannot be minimized to satisfy the General Permit criteria described in the links above.
Boat lifts and ramps are regulated by the CZM Rules. For sites located outside of the jurisdiction of the CZM Rules, there is a potential Permit by Rule (PBR), N.J.A.C. 7:13-7.2(a)6. Please note, the boat launching ramps must be constructed at grade. If the a project does not meet the PBR listed and is not subject to the CZM Rules, then the boat lift and ramp can only be constructed in a portion of a manmade impoundment, such as a pond or lake.
The construction of boat or jet ski lifts and/or boat ramps within the coastal zone generally requires a permit. Reconstruction of some waterfront structures below the mean high water line may qualify for a Zane Exemption. Available permits include coastal permit-by-rule 5 for landward portions of non-residential lifts or ramps, coastal permit-by-rule 10 for landward portions of residential ramps, coastal general permit for construction of lifts in manmade lagoons, and Individual permits. The portion of the ramp or boatlift project below the mean high water line will require a Waterfront Development Individual Permit if it does not qualify for the Zane exemption or the coastal general permit 19.
See the “Jurisdiction” section of the "Coastal Permitting" website to determine which areas regulated under the Coastal Permit Program rules N.J.A.C. 7:7-1.1 et seq. and the Coastal Zone Management rules N.J.A.C. 7:7E-1.1 et seq occur on your site. Which permits are available for a project depends on where your project is sited.
WATERFRONT
Zane Exemption
Reconstruction, in place and in kind, of existing boatlift or ramp structures may qualify for a Zane Exemption if they were legally existing prior to January 1, 1981 and appear on the 1977 Tidelands Base maps or the promulgated Coastal Wetlands Maps. Please see N.J.A.C. 7:7-2.3(d) 7 for more information.
This coastal general permit may apply to your project:
Coastal General Permit 19 authorizes construction of boat lifts in manmade lagoons. For further information regarding the requirements of this general permit please refer to N.J.A.C. 7:7-7.19.
CAFRA
These coastal permits-by-rule may apply to your project--
Coastal Permit-by-rule 5 authorizes the landward portion of non-residential boat ramps in the CAFRA area above the mean high water line, and in coastal wetlands above the mean high water line, provided the portion of the boat ramp waterward of the mean high water line is authorized by a Waterfront Development permit. If coastal wetlands are present below the mean high water line and are impacted by the project a separate coastal wetlands individual permit generally is required. Please see N.J.A.C. 7:2(a)5 for a full description.
Coastal Permit-by-rule 10 authorizes the landward portion of a residential boat ramp in the CAFRA area above the mean high water line, provided the ramp is not in wetlands and provided the portion of the boat ramp waterward of the mean high water line is authorized by a Waterfront Development permit. If coastal wetlands are present below the mean high water line and are impacted by the project a separate coastal wetlands individual permit generally is required. Please see N.J.A.C. 7:2(a)10 for a full description.
COASTAL WETLANDS
These coastal permits-by-rule may apply to your project:
Coastal Permit-by-rule 5 authorizes the landward portion of non-residential boat ramps in the CAFRA area above the mean high water line, and in coastal wetlands above the mean high water line, provided the portion of the boat ramp waterward of the mean high water line is authorized by a Waterfront Development permit. If coastal wetlands are present below the mean high water line and are impacted by the project a separate coastal wetlands individual permit generally is required. Please see N.J.A.C. 7:2(a)5 for a full description.
Coastal Permit-by-rule 10 authorizes the landward portion of a residential boat ramp in the CAFRA area above the mean high water line, provided the ramp is not in wetlands and provided the portion of the boat ramp waterward of the mean high water line is authorized by a Waterfront Development permit. If coastal wetlands are present below the mean high water line and are impacted by the project a separate coastal wetlands individual permit generally is required. Please see N.J.A.C. 7:2(a)10 for a full description.
Tidelands, also known as riparian lands, are all those lands now or formerly flowed by the mean high tide of a natural waterway; that is to say any land that is currently or was previously covered by tidal waters. The State of New Jersey, and therefore the people of New Jersey, owns all Tidelands except for those to which it has already sold its interest in the form of a riparian grant.
The construction of a boat lift and/or a boat ramp that are proposed in a tidelands area may require a tidelands license if the activities are taking place at or below the mean high water line of a tidal waterway and/or a tidelands grant if the activities are taking place in an area that is currently landward of the mean high water line but was, at some point, flowed by the tide. It is important to note that the State generally does not own artificial waterways such as lagoons however, the State does claim those lands within a lagoon that were flowed by the mean high tide of a natural waterway which existed prior to the creation of the lagoon.
A tidelands license is a short term revocable rental document to use tidelands generally for structures such as docks, bulkhead extensions, mooring piles, and other temporary structures as well as for dredging projects. Licenses are project specific and expire after a finite term ranging from one to ten years. Most licenses may be renewed.
A riparian grant, or tidelands grant, is a deed from the State of New Jersey selling its tidelands. Tidelands grants are generally only issued for lands that have already been filled in and are no longer flowed by the tide.
For more information on tidelands instruments, please see the tidelands section of this website.
For information and instruction on how to determine whether you are in an area that may require either a license or a grant, or for information how to apply for Tideland instruments please see the "Before you Build, Before you Buy" webpage.
