Pine Barrens

10,000 BCE - present

The New Jersey Pine Barrens, or Pinelands, contains over 1.1 million acres of oak and pitch pines. This sandy forest is home to many endangered plant and animal species including the timber rattlesnake, corn snake, and pine barrens tree frog. As the largest area of relatively undeveloped land in the northeast corridor, the Pinelands National Reserve occupies over 20% of the state’s land. Underneath the forest, the Kirkwood-Cohansey Aquifer provides approximately 90% of flow to the streams and rivers in the Pinelands. This shallow water system has been tapped by local settlers, threatening the fragile balance of many rare plants and animals. The 17 trillion gallon aquifer is one of the East Coast’s largest reserves of freshwater and is vulnerable to pollution from residential and agricultural runoff. The Pine Barrens is home to generations of ‘Pineys’ who sparsely populate the region. This expanse of trees was shaped in part by the seasonal burnings of native Lenni Lenape peoples. Today fires are still a carefully tuned occurrence in the natural ecosystem. The Pine Barrens contain more than 500 species of animals and 800 species and varieties of plants. This unique forest ecosystem depends on a fragile aquifer that is in constant threat from overuse and pollution by a growing urbanized population.

ENDANGERED & THREATENED SPECIES IN THE PINE BARRENS

15 bird species are endangered

1 mammal species is endangered

3 reptile species are endangered

3 amphibian species are endangered

2 invertebrate species are endangered

12 bird species are threatened

3 reptile species are threatened

2 amphibian species are threatened

2 invertebrate species are endangered

The New Jersey Pine Barrens falls within the ancestral homelands of the Lenapehoking (Lenni-Lenape) peoples.

Territorial recognition: https://native-land.ca/

Delaware Bay Most Pressing Issues List

Aquifer Stability

The Kirkwood-Cohansey Aquifer beneath the Pine Barrens provides freshwater to the region’s plant and animal species. The shallow water system is vulnerable to pollution from agricultural runoff. Demands from a growing population surrounding the Pine Barrens puts pressure on how much water can be diverted, risking species decline and habitat loss.

Climate Change

The New Jersey Coastline has risen 4-8 inches over the past 100 years. Rising temperatures and an increase in the severity of weather events threaten species habitats. Increased flooding also damages Pineland wetlands.

Pollution

Residential and agricultural runoff from surrounding populations threatens the interior of the Pine Barrens ecosystem. Proposals for commercial pipelines across the Pinelands risk species loss and severe environmental damage.

How You Can Help

Pinelands Preservation Alliance

The PPA is devoted to preserving the natural and historic resources of the New Jersey Pinelands. The organization operates Pinelands Adventures, an outdoor recreation program aimed at fostering public understanding and devotion to the Pinelands, and Rancocas Creek Farm, a sustainable organic farm connected to our mission to protect the Pinelands.

South Jersey Water Saver

South Jersey Water Savers is an educational campaign led by nine organizations, which are also part of the Delaware River Watershed Initiative. The campaign’s goal is to protect the Kirkwood-Cohansey Aquifer – South Jersey’s primary source of water.

Sources:

Jeremy Pearce, "Trouble in Paradise," New York Times, June 23, 2002.

Endangered and threatened wildlife of New Jersey, edited by Bruce E. Beans and Larry Niles (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2003), 224-227.

Charles A. Stansfield, A Geography of New Jersey: The City in the Garden (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1998), 57.

Endangered and threatened wildlife of New Jersey, edited by Bruce E. Beans and Larry Niles (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2003), 193-197.

Kenneth Buchhoiz and Ralph E. Good, "Compendium of New Jersey

"Pine Barrens Literature," Center for Coastal and Environmental Studies: Divison of Pinelands Research, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, July 1982.

“The Pinelands National Reserve,” State of New Jersey Pinelands Commission, accessed Sept 7, 2022.

Pinelands Preservation Alliance, State of the Pinelands 2008 Annual Report (Southampton, NJ: Pinelands Preservation Alliance, 2008), 10-11.

Bruce Stutz, "In a Rare U.S. Preserve, Water Pressures Mount As Development Closes In," Yale Environment 360, August 10, 2017.

Nancy Holt, "RUMBLES," AVALANCHE, no.11, (Summer 1975): 6, https://holtsmithsonfoundation.org/pine-barrens-0

Alison Mitchell, "Pine Barrens natural landscape will rebound from Wharton wildfire," New Jersey Conservation Foundation, June 30, 2022.

Pinelands Preservation Alliance, Jaclyn Rhoads, White Paper on Climate Change Solutions for the Pinelands of New Jersey (Pinelands Preservation Alliance, 2021).