STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator PARKER SPACE
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senator Tiver
SYNOPSIS
Establishes minimum acreage goal and schedule for prescribed burns in pinelands area and Statewide.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act setting a minimum acreage goal and schedule for prescribed burns, and supplementing P.L.2018, c.107 (C.13:9-44.11 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Within one year from the effective date of this act, the department shall ensure that prescribed burns occur annually in the pinelands area, as defined pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-3), and on additional acreage Statewide. The minimum acreage of the prescribed burns shall be:
(1) for the first year of prescribed burns, 25,000 acres in the pinelands area and 10,000 additional acres Statewide;
(2) for the second year of prescribed burns, 30,000 acres in the pinelands area and 12,000 additional acres Statewide;
(3) for the third year of prescribed burns, 35,000 acres in the pinelands area and 14,000 additional acres Statewide;
(4) for the fourth year of prescribed burns, 40,000 acres in the pinelands area and 16,000 additional acres Statewide;
(5) for the fifth year of prescribed burns, 45,000 acres in the pinelands area and 18,000 additional acres Statewide;
(6) for the sixth and each subsequent year of prescribed burns, 50,000 acres in the pinelands area and 20,000 additional acres Statewide;
b. The prescribed burns may be conducted by the department, the federal government, or by landowners or lessees pursuant to the “Prescribed Burn Act,” P.L.2018, c.107 (C.13:9-44.11 et seq.).
c. The department shall require that all prescribed burns in the State be conducted and completed between the months of November and March prior to the wildfire season in New Jersey.
d. The department, in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture, the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council, the Pinelands Commission, the State Planning Commission, and any other relevant State entity, shall incorporate the requirements of subsections a. and b. of this section into all applicable environmental and land management plans, programs, and surveys, and any updates thereto.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would direct the Department of Environmental Protection, within one year of the bill’s enactment, to ensure that prescribed burns are conducted annually on certain minimum acreage in the pinelands area, and elsewhere in the State. The prescribed burns are to take place on minimum acreage beginning with 25,000 acres in the pinelands area and an additional 10,000 acres Statewide and increasing over a period of six years to a final total of 50,000 acres in the pinelands area and 20,000 acres Statewide.
A prescribed burn may be conducted by the State, the federal government, or a landowner or lessee with approval by the Department of Environmental Protection pursuant to existing law. The bill would also require all relevant State agencies involved in environmental planning and land use management to incorporate the Statewide prescribed burn goal into all plans, programs, and surveys, whether they are Statewide or local initiatives, or undertaken in conjunction with the federal government.
The bill would require all prescribed burns throughout the State to occur between the months of November and March. According to the New Jersey State Forest Fire Service, prescribed burns are generally conducted during late winter months to reduce the amount of smoke produced and because weather conditions tend to be more predictable for safer controlled fires. Under this bill, prescribed burns would be required to be conducted and completed prior to prime wildfire season, which is typically during the months of April and May in New Jersey.
A prescribed burn is the deliberate ignition and controlled open burning of wildland fire fuels to attain resource management objectives, such as public safety, wildfire control, ecological, silvicultural, agricultural, or other natural resource management goals.