Welcome to the Division of Land Resource Protection

Island Beach State Park, NJ© 2018 Jill Neall, Used by Permisssion.

About the Division: Managing New Jersey’s land is a critical function of the Department of Environmental Protection’s overall environmental protection strategy. In recognition of the intimate tie between land use and the health and quality of our streams, estuaries, coastal waters, wetlands, wildlife habitat and our drinking water, the New Jersey legislature has charged the Department with regulating land use activities.

The Department’s Division of Land Resource Protection fulfills this obligation by regulating land use activities through a permit process in accordance with the rules promulgated in support of the following statutes: Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act (N.J.S.A. 13:9B et seq.), Flood Hazard Area Control Act (N.J.S.A. 58:16A), Wetlands Act of 1970 (N.J.S.A. 13:9A-1 et. seq.), Coastal Area Facility Review Act (N.J.S.A. 13:19-1 et seq.), Waterfront Development Law (N.J.S.A. 12:5-3), Tidelands Act (N.J.S.A. 12:3), NJ Water Pollution Control Act (N.J.S.A. 58:10A et seq.), and the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act (P.L. 2004, c.120).

DEP REQUESTS AN ELECTRONIC COPY WITH ALL APPLICATION SUBMITTALS: As New Jersey responds to COVID-19, our office remains committed to processing land use applications. However, staff has transitioned to reviewing virtually all applications remotely. Hence it is imperative that you utilize the electronic services and submit the qualified permits and additional information electronically.  An electronic copy of the entire application, including plans, should be submitted on CD-ROM or thumb drive for Individual permit applications with a separate folder for each type of report.

If you have questions regarding the Division or its mission, please visit our various webpages or use our contact page to get in touch with us directly.

For comments or suggestions regarding this website design, please contact our webmaster using this form.