New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 7 - COASTAL PERMIT PROGRAM RULES › Subchapter 17 - MITIGATION › Section 7:7-17.1 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
In addition to the terms defined at
				  7:7-1.5, the following words and
				  terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings unless
				  the context clearly indicates otherwise.
"Creation" means the establishment of wetland or intertidal
				  and subtidal shallows characteristics and functions in uplands.
"Credit purchase" means the purchase of credits from a
				  mitigation bank, as that term is defined at N.J.A.C. 7:7-1.5, as a substitute
				  for performance of restoration, creation, enhancement, or preservation by a
				  permittee. Each credit counts for a certain acreage amount of mitigation type.
				  Once a credit is applied to satisfy a mitigation obligation under this
				  subchapter, it is exhausted and may not be sold or used again.
"Degraded wetland" means a wetland in which there is
				  impaired surface water flow or groundwater hydrology, or excessive drainage; a
				  wetland that has been partially filled or excavated, contaminated with
				  hazardous substances, or that has an ecological function substantially less
				  than that of undisturbed wetlands in the region.
"Enhancement" means the improvement of the ability of an
				  existing, degraded wetland or intertidal and subtidal shallow to support
				  natural aquatic life through substantial alterations to the soils, vegetation,
				  and/or hydrology. Improvement of a wetland or water that is not degraded does
				  not constitute enhancement.
"Fee simple" means absolute ownership in land, unencumbered
				  by any other interest or estate.
"In-kind mitigation" means mitigation that provides similar
				  values and functions as the area disturbed, including similar wildlife habitat,
				  similar vegetative species coverage and density, equivalent flood water storage
				  capacity, and equivalency of other relevant values or functions. In the case of
				  a mitigation bank, this is accomplished through the purchase of credits at
				  which similar values and functions have been established.
"In-lieu fee program" means a program approved by the
				  Department and the USACE that involves the restoration, creation, enhancement,
				  and/or preservation of aquatic resources through funds paid to a government or
				  non-profit entity to satisfy compensatory mitigation requirements for both
				  State and USACE permits. An in-lieu fee program sells compensatory mitigation
				  credits to permittees whose obligation to provide mitigation is transferred to
				  the in-lieu fee program. An in-lieu fee program does not refer to contributions
				  to the Wetlands Mitigation Council or the Department's dedicated account for
				  shellfish habitat mitigation.
"In-lieu fee program instrument" means the legal document
				  for the establishment, operation, and use of an in-lieu fee program.
"Mitigation" means activities carried out in accordance with
				  this subchapter in order to compensate for the loss or disturbance of wetlands,
				  intertidal and subtidal shallows, submerged aquatic vegetation, riparian zones,
				  or shellfish habitat.
"Mitigation banking instrument" means documentation of
				  Department approval of the objectives and administration of the bank including,
				  as appropriate:
1. Bank goals and objectives;
2. Ownership of bank lands;
3. Bank size and classes of wetlands and/or other aquatic
				  resources proposed for inclusion in the bank, including a site plan and
				  specifications;
4. Description of baseline conditions at the bank
				  site;
5. Geographic service area;
6. Wetland classes or other aquatic resource impacts suitable
				  for compensation;
7. Methods for determining credits and debits;
8. Accounting procedures;
9. Performance standards for determining credit availability
				  and bank success;
10. Reporting protocols and monitoring plan;
11. Contingency and corrective actions and
				  responsibilities;
12. Financial assurances;
13. Compensation ratios; and
14. Provisions for long-term management and
				  maintenance.
"Mitigation bank site" means the portion of a site, or the
				  piece of property, upon which a mitigation bank is proposed or
				  developed.
"Monetary contribution" means giving money to the
				  Department's dedicated account for shellfish habitat mitigation or the Wetlands
				  Mitigation Council.
"Out-of-kind mitigation" means mitigation that is not
				  in-kind mitigation.
"Restoration" means:
1. The reestablishment of wetland, submerged vegetation
				  habitat, tidal water, and/or intertidal and subtidal shallows characteristics
				  and functions in an area that was once a wetlands and/or intertidal and
				  subtidal shallows but is no longer; or
2. The reversal of a temporary disturbance and the
				  reestablishment of the functions and values of the wetlands and/or intertidal
				  and subtidal shallows that was temporarily disturbed.
"Service area" means the geographic area within which
				  impacts can be mitigated at a specific mitigation bank.
"Temporary disturbance" means a regulated activity that
				  occupies, persists and/or occurs on a site for no more than six months. Where a
				  disturbance associated with certain regulated activities, such as hazardous
				  substance remediation or solid waste facility closure, is intended to be
				  temporary but will exceed six months in duration because of the nature of the
				  activity, the Department will consider the disturbance to be temporary for
				  purposes of this subchapter provided the disturbed areas are restored to their
				  original topography, and all necessary measures are implemented to ensure that
				  the original vegetative cover onsite is restored to its previous (or an
				  improved) condition.
"Wetlands Mitigation Fund" means the repository for monetary
				  contributions made for mitigation purposes, established at
				  13:9B-14.a as the "Wetlands
				  Mitigation Bank".