When the New Jersey Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act was passed in 2004, it wasn’t seen as a climate change mitigation measure. However, as time has passed, the role of the Highlands region in helping New Jersey navigate the challenges of a changing climate has become evident.

Protection of the Highlands region is critical not only because the region provides plentiful clean drinking water to over 7 million people, but also because of the region’s tremendous agricultural production capacity within a two-hour drive of over 20 million people, and the ability of the region’s extensive forests and wetlands that serve to retain and naturally filter water as well as slow its release after intense storms.

The Highlands Council has developed guidance that assists municipalities in meeting state climate change requirements in the context of the significance of the region.