Two of every three people who spoke at a public hearing Sept. 3 on new coastal zone land use regulations urged the state to adopt them as soon as possible.

The virtual hearing by the state Department of Environmental Protection gave members of the public another opportunity to comment on the department’s proposed Resilient Environments and Landscapes regulations, better known as REAL.

The original proposed regulations had run into strong opposition. At the hearing, Colleen Lambert, the mayor of Beach Haven, called them “too much, too soon,” and a representative of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association said they are not a “workable solution to needed resilience.”

Cape May County was represented at the hearing by environmental consultant Peter Lomax, who said climate resiliency is important, but that the DEP’s proposed regulations did not meet the test of a “balanced and practical approach.”

For many of the regulations’ supporters who spoke, a major objection was a DEP notice that the original proposal was being substantially changed. They said the original REAL rules should have been adopted prior to their Aug. 4 deadline and not been subjected to a new comment period.

The changes published by the DEP last month aimed at compromise with many in coastal counties who worry about the economic impact of the regulations.

Almost to a person, those who supported the proposed regulations argued that the science underscoring the rules is sound, with one calling the changes to the original proposed rules, published in August 2024, “a troubling step backward.”

Several members of the DEP were present for the hearing but offered no comment.

The rules are seen as part of an effort to cement Gov. Phil Murphy’s legacy in place before he leaves office in January. During his eight-year run his administration became a strong champion for a clean energy initiative to both lessen the impact of climate change and better prepare the state to adapt to its potential impact.

To that end the DEP in August 2024 published extensive new regulations, which came to be known as REAL, regarding development and redevelopment in the state’s coastal zones. The new rules were praised by environmental groups and strongly criticized by coastal communities.

From the first day of publication of the 1,047-page document in the New Jersey Register the new regulations had one year to be adopted or scrapped. For many in the administration the race was on to get the regulations on the books prior to Murphy’s leaving office.

But faced with serious opposition, the DEP on July 21 announced substantial changes in the original rules, resetting the clock that had required their adoption or withdrawal by Aug. 4. A new comment period was initiated, and the public hearing on the changes was scheduled for Sept. 3. That hearing delivered two messages, neither of which was favorable with respect to the changes to the originally published regulations.

Among the major changes to the regulations as originally published are a lowering of building elevation requirements for new and substantially improved structures, a shrinking of a new inundation risk zone and a lengthening of the legacy period for existing projects. An addition in the changed regulations allows hardship exceptions for affordable housing development in flood zones.

With a fluctuating number that hit a high of 82 people online for the virtual hearing, 20 elected to give testimony. Seven of those who spoke reiterated criticisms that have dogged the proposed rules since August 2024.

Ray Cantor of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association said REAL, even with the proposed changes, does not represent a workable solution to resilience issues. He reiterated the support of the business community for resilience efforts but called the extensive new regulations too extreme in their attempts at adaption to climate change.

Cantor also said the 2019 Rutgers study on sea level rise that had been a basis for the rules had been updated with new science, an update, he added, that the DEP has yet to release.

Lomax, an environmental consultant and adviser to Cape May County government, called for a more practical and balanced approach to adaptation. He argued that REAL would hurt county property values and unnecessarily restrict development. He added that what he called the “one size fits all’ regulations disregard local conditions based on assumptions of climate change over 70 years in the future.

Melissa Danko, executive director of the Marine Trade Association, said the new rules would lean to the closing of marinas that are badly needed in the coastal zone. Others wanted to know why the DEP has not published data on how many properties would be impacted by the proposed changes to the new Inundation Risk Zone.

Supporters of REAL had their criticisms, too, but most argued for quick adoption of the regulations in full. Many did not want to run the risk of another round of changes that would hold up adoption.

The backing for REAL ran deep with the speakers who supported it, but one concern ran through the comments of many of them. To a person, supporters opposed allowing affordable housing projects to qualify for a hardship waiver concerning development in a flood zone.

Those who qualify for affordable housing, these speakers said, deserve decent accommodations that are free from the risks associated with a flood zone; they are the least able to deal with those risks. Many who opposed this change also saw in it a loophole that would allow developers to skirt the DEP regulations for new development by having a minimum number of affordable housing units in a larger subdivision.

Among the REAL supporters, Jennifer Coffee of the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions argued that the rules are based on solid science. Those who argued otherwise were setting up a smokescreen for their other objections, she said. Coffee was especially supportive of extending stormwater management requirements to redevelopment projects.

Katherine Fisher from the League of Conservation Voters joined with others in urging fast adoption. She was particularly critical of the exemption for affordable housing.

Danielle McCulloch of the American Littoral Society reminded the audience that “80% of the state is coastal counties,” making these regulations very important to the state’s adaptation to climate change.

Ben Vitale of the Union of Concerned Scientists and a software engineer predicted increased sunny-day flooding, arguing that sea level rise represented a major risk to taxpayers. He said New Jersey’s dense coastal development placed it third on a list of states that face serious dangers from sea level rise, the others being Louisiana and Florida. “Business as usual will not cut it,” Vitale said.

One homeowner who lives on the water related a story of losing 180 feet of property so far as the ocean reclaims the shoreline.

Speakers from the Raritan Watershed Association, the Surfrider Foundation and Water Spirit all spoke in favor of adoption. Tracy Gorden of the Raritan Watershed group said the proposed changes to the original rules were a “troubling step backward.” She urged the state not to weaken its resolve.

One speaker may have well represented many who were not part of the hearing. Eric Hansen, who self-identified just as a property owner, criticized the process, saying he had read the entire 1,000-page-plus document and found that the average citizen could not be expected to understand it.

The public comment period remains open until Sept. 19. The DEP Notice of Substantial Change webpage has information on submitting written comment and can be found here. The webpage also states that the DEP anticipates adoption of REAL by January 2026, most likely prior to the inauguration of a new governor.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.