New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 25 - DIVISION OF FISH AND WILDLIFE RULES › Subchapter 2 - USE OF ALL LAND AND WATER AREAS UNDER THE CONTROL OF THE DIVISION › Section 7:25-2.19 - Higbee Beach

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) In addition to all regulations prescribed in this subchapter affecting the designated Wildlife Management Areas listed at 7:25-2.18, the following additional regulations shall apply to the public use of the Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area (HBWMA):
1. From 12:01 A.M. on September 15 until 8:00 A.M. on November 1 of each year, use of the HBWMA shall be limited to trails designated on the map posted at the HBWMA parking lot, and on maps available at the division's Endangered and Nongame Species Program office located at the HBWMA.
2. Fields on the HBWMA shown on the map described at (a)1 above may be designated as "refuge areas" from 12:01 A.M. on September 15 until 8:00 A.M. on November 1 of each year. Observations of these refuge areas will be permitted only from blinds established and maintained by the division's Endangered and Nongame Species Program. Permits for observation from established trails within these refuge areas may be issued by the division's Endangered and Nongame Species Program office upon written request received in the division's Trenton office (CN 400, Trenton NJ 08625) at least five days in advance of the effective date of the permit and provided the specific permitted activity is consistent with the intent of this section.
3. During the time period specified at (a)1 above, group size will be limited to six people. Permits for groups numbering more than six people will be available at no charge from the division's Endangered and Nongame Species Program office located at the HBWMA.
4. No person may hunt or trap on the HBWMA from 12:01 A.M. on September 1 to 12:01 A.M. on the first Monday after the white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) six day firearm season ends in accordance with the provisions of 7:25-5.27.
5. Motor vehicles may be used on designated roads and on the beach area (the area seaward of the dunes) of the HBWMA only as follows:
i. The operator must have in possession a valid permit issued for use on the HBWMA and available at no charge upon written request received in the division's Trenton office (CN 400, Trenton, NJ 08625);
ii. Motor vehicles may not be present on the beach area from two hours before high tide to two hours after high tide, as the times of such tides are posted at the HBWMA parking lot;
iii. Motor vehicles may not be present on the beach area between Memorial Day (the last Monday in May) and Labor Day (the first Monday in September) from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and as further limited at (a)5ii above; and
iv. Motor vehicles may be excluded from the beach area upon departmental determination that this action is necessary to maintain and enhance the use of HBWMA by migratory and resident endangered and threatened species of wildlife.
6. From 12:01 A.M. on April 15 until 12:01 A.M. on September 15 of each year, that part of the HBWMA designated as the south-end beach area, as described on the maps posted at the HBWMA parking lot, available at the Division's Endangered and Nongame Species office located at the HBWMA and at the Division's Trenton office (501 E. State Street, Station Plaza 5, Third Floor, CN 400, Trenton, N.J. 08625), and on file with the Office of Administrative Law, shall be closed to all public access and use, except upon prior written approval from the Department, which may be obtained from the Division's Trenton office.
7. That part of the HBWMA designated as the north-end beach area, as described on the maps posted and available in accordance with (a)6 above, shall be open year-round to public access and use for those activities permissible under N.J.A.C. 7:25-2.
8. At all times, the dune areas of HBWMA are closed to all public access and use, except upon prior written approval from the Department, which may be obtained from the Division's Trenton office at the address listed in (a)6 above. Dune areas may be observed from established trails as designated and described on the maps posted and available in accordance with (a)6 above. Entry onto the dunes from established trails is prohibited at all times.