Special Announcements:

Announcement Regarding Soil Compaction

The State Soil Conservation Committee has revised The Standards for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control in New Jersey to include provisions for mitigating the negative impacts of soil compaction on construction sites subject to review and regulation by the Soil Erosion and Sediment Control Act, N.J.S.A. 4:24-39, et seq. in accordance with P.L. 2010, Chapter 113. These provisions have been included within the Standards for Topsoiling (Chapter 8) and Land Grading (Chapter 19).

Effective December 7th, 2017, any application submitted to a local Soil Conservation District for soil erosion and sediment control plan certification must include provisions to mitigate potential soil compaction in accordance with the revised Standards.

UPDATE: Urban Redevelopment Exclusion Areas

A complete copy of the Standards and associated forms and documents as well as a Frequently Asked Questions document to aid the regulated community in complying with these requirements may be downloaded from the NJ Department of Agriculture website at:

http://www.nj.gov/agriculture/divisions/anr/nrc/njerosion.html

About the District

The Bergen County Soil Conservation District is a special purpose subdivision of the State of New Jersey. There are 15 soil conservation districts in New Jersey with each serving one or more counties.

The District provides soils information, technical assistance, and conservation education to the public. We also implement the Soil Erosion and Sediment Control Act, Chapter 251, P.L. 1975. Through this State Law, soil erosion and sedimentation as a result of construction activity is substantially minimized.

The District operates under the guidance of the New Jersey Department of Agriculture State Soil Conservation Committee. We are governed by a board of five supervisors who are nominated locally and appointed by the State Soil Conservation Committee.

As a member of the New Jersey Conservation Partnership, our mission is to provide leadership in the planning and implementation of natural resource management programs for the agricultural and development communities and the general public through a locally based delivery system in coordination with local, state and federal partners.

Our Nation’s soil conservation districts were formed back in the 1930′s as a result of the Dust Bowl. Poor land management practices resulted in mounting soil erosion, floods, and sky blackening dust storms that swept across the Nation.

In response to growing public concern for water quality, New Jersey’s soil conservation districts have become the primary local governmental agencies responsible for controlling point sources of pollution due to soil erosion and sedimentation associated with construction, mining, quarrying, and agriculture.