Attendees:

Wilma Morrissey
Steve Taylor
Faith Hahn
Cathie Oliver
Joan Koos
Dan Van Abs
Peter Krukowsky
Eric Anderson
Bob Scro
Vincent Domidion
Mac Plent
Nancy Plent
Stanley Marciniak
Mary Burne
Rosemary Brewer
Alice Hemphill

The meeting began by discussing potential collaborative efforts between the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program and the Manasquan River Watershed Association. Mr. Taylor introduced Mr. Robert Scro, Executive Director of the Barnegat Bay Estuary Program. Mr. Scro began his presentation by suggesting that recent legislation and state initiatives sponsored by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection may be a good starting point for collaboration. He said that he and Mr. Taylor already had preliminary discussions about cooperative projects related to the new stormwater management rules and Category 1 classifications being proposed by the NJDEP.

Mr. Scro reported that he is working with the Ocean County Mayors Association to collect information about their needs once they begin implementing the new stormwater management regulations for municipalities. To facilitate communication, the Barnegat Bay program is forming 6 municipal roundtables in an effort to work with a few municipalities at a time to discuss the stormwater regulations. The sessions are interactive and are intended to provide information to the Barnegat Bay program about municipal needs and to share information with municipal officials about the regulatory requirements associated with the program. The Barnegat Bay program will also provide compliance assistance to municipalities to help them achieve compliance with the new stormwater permits. During preliminary discussions, he is learning that towns have different needs so the Barnegat Program will try to customize their support based on individual needs. Similar sessions will be helpful to Manasquan River watershed municipalities. In fact, since the Barnegat Bay watershed and the Manasquan River watershed share some municipal boundaries, a common effort may be appropriate.

The Barnegat Program is also focusing on impaired waters as identified by the NJDEP. The State is developing Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) for fecal coliform in impaired lakes and streams and phosphorous TMDLs for impaired lakes. This effort will also be an area of focus for the Barnegat Program.

Mr. Scro said that since the Barnegat Bay program and the MRWA share some of the same media in the Monmouth-Ocean county area, a coordinated media strategy would be effective if presented as a coastal watersheds perspective.

Members asked Mr. Scro if his program has discussed the idea of developing regional stormwater management plans, which is an option in the proposed stormwater management rule. Mr. Scro said they have not yet discussed this issue. Mr. Van Abs said that regional stormwater management plans can be very expensive. The Raritan
Basin Watershed Management Project is currently developing a stormwater management plan for a five square mile area and the cost is approximately $200,000.

Members also asked if there was an effort to develop a model ordinance package to provide to municipalities to assist them in managing the growth in their communities. Mr. Scro responded that he was aware of model ordinances through the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC) as well as other watershed organizations.

Members said that elements of the stormwater regulations are being standardized and provided to towns to assist them with implementation.

Members said that the Monmouth County Planning Board plans to develop regional stormwater management plans at some point in the future.

Members suggested contacting Robin Murray of the Office of Smart Growth since she is examining county issues on a watershed basis.

Mr. Taylor thanked Mr. Scro for attending the meeting and said that he was looking forward to working more closely with the Barnegat Bay program in the future.

In other business, Mr. Krukowsky raised concerns about a proposed development in Farmingdale. A builders remedy lawsuit is underway that will seek more than 100 units on the proposed site. Under COAH requirements, the borough needs an additional 5 units. It has currently established 14 units. The borough's master plan identifies the site as freshwater wetlands. There are some uplands on the site, but many residents believe the wetlands delineation done by the developer contains many errors. A non-profit organization, "Hands Across Farmingdale" has asked the NJDEP to revisit the site to reevaluate the wetlands delineation. If appropriate, the MRWA can provide assistance by drafting a "Friends of the Court" brief identifying environmental impacts associated with developing the site.

Mr. Marciniak informed the group that Howell Township is currently reviewing a 90 acre site plan on Five Points Road and Asbury Avenue that has endangered species, freshwater wetlands, American Chestnut trees and Lenape artifacts. The site is also in need of streambank buffer protection due to the sensitivity of the area and the erosion vulnerability of soils found in the area.

The meeting adjourned at 9:00 p.m.