The Role of Municipal Ordinances in Protecting Local Watersheds

Municipal ordinances, when thoughtfully drafted and effectively implemented, are among the most powerful tools for protecting watersheds, managing stormwater, preserving forests and wetlands, and reducing flood risk. While the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) provides baseline regulatory standards, these requirements function only as minimum thresholds. Under New Jersey’s home rule framework and the Municipal Land Use Law (MLUL), municipalities have broad authority to shape development patterns and use zoning, environmental ordinances, and master planning to adopt standards aligned with their community’s environmental constraints and development demands.

How municipalities put this authority into practice framed a recent webinar hosted by The Watershed Institute: “Municipal Ordinances: Key to Environmental Protection.”

Moderated by Michael Pisauro, Esq., Policy Director for The Watershed Institute, the webinar brought together three experienced practitioners to explore how municipalities can leverage local ordinances to strengthen environmental protection and community resilience:

• Mark Gallagher, Vice President of Princeton Hydro with over 30 years of environmental consulting and habitat restoration experience;
• Michele Donato Esq, General Counsel to New Jersey Planning Officials and Past President of the New Jersey Institute of Local Government Attorneys; and
• Michael G. Sinkevich, a shareholder with Lieberman Blecher & Sinkevich PC, practicing in environmental and land use law.

Each presenter approached the issue from a different, complementary lens: science, land use law, and regulatory practice.

Protecting Natural Green Infrastructure

Mark began the webinar with an overview of New Jersey’s natural green infrastructure (forests, floodplains, riparian corridors, wetlands, and meadows) and its role in supporting stormwater management. Engineered systems are most effective when the surrounding natural landscapes can absorb, slow, and filter runoff. He stressed that municipalities shape the fate of these natural systems through their zoning and development decisions, making local ordinances essential to watershed health.

Mark examined how decades of land alteration, including stream channelization and straightening, impervious surface expansion, and floodplain encroachment, have dramatically changed stream systems across the state. As runoff volume increases, so does the frequency and duration of bankfull flows, which widen channels, erode banks, and transport sediment. A key indicator of watershed imbalance is floodplain disconnection: in healthy systems, streams access their floodplains during frequent storm events, dissipating energy and reducing downstream impacts. In many developed watersheds, streams remain confined within incised channels except during major storms, worsening erosion and downstream flooding.

Mark directly connected these environmental realities to municipal decision-making. Municipal ordinances play a critical role in maintaining and restoring the natural systems that support stormwater management, water quality, and community resilience. Municipalities can shape new development and use redevelopment projects as opportunities to repair historic environmental damage.

He highlighted municipal tools that strengthen watershed function, including well-crafted stream corridor ordinances, updated Environmental Resource Inventories (ERIs), master plan policies that prioritize open space preservation, and watershed improvement strategies that integrate ecological restoration with engineered BMPs.

Modernizing Zoning to Reflect Environmental Realities

Michele centered her presentation on a key message: the legal tools are already there for municipalities to guide growth responsibly, but they must be applied proactively and with precision.

She addressed a common assumption heard at planning board hearings: “If it’s zoned for it, it must be appropriate.” That assumption, she explained, is not always grounded in environmental analysis. Zoning districts set permitted uses and density ranges, but often without carefully accounting for wetlands, floodplains, sensitive habit, or limited infrastructure capacity.

For years, municipalities operated under the belief that the MLUL’s uniformity clause required identical development yield across parcels within a zone. However, the New Jersey Supreme Court’s decision in “Rumson Estates, Inc v. Mayor Council of Borough of Fair Haven” (2003) clarified that municipalities may calibrate density based on the physical characteristics of a property. Environmentally constrained parcels don’t need to support the same development intensity as unconstrained sites.

Michele also emphasized the importance of updating land-use definitions. Outdated definitions can inadvertently allow impacts far beyond what the original ordinance intended. Warehouse standards are a clear example: many were written decades ago and don’t account for today’s 24/7 high‑cube logistics operations with heavy truck traffic. She noted that timing of these updates is also critical. Under the MLUL’s “time of application” rule, existing zoning is locked-in once an application is filed, meaning municipalities must revise their ordinances before developers submit proposals.

Master plans also play a critical role. A well-designed plan evaluates full build-out potential, accounts for infrastructure and resource limitations, and directs growth away from sensitive areas. She urged municipalities to anticipate emerging high‑impact uses, such as data centers, and set appropriate standards in advance.

Legal Foundations and Enforcement

Michael G. Sinkevich outlined the legal framework that empowers municipalities to regulate environmental impacts and enforce local standards. He demonstrated how federal law, state regulations, and municipal authority intersect, especially in zoning and stormwater management, to create a strong foundation for local environmental protection.

Municipal authority to adopt environmental protections comes from two main sources: First is the zoning power granted under the MLUL, which allows towns to guide development in ways that protect public health, safety, and welfare. The MLUL also outlines what zoning ordinances may regulate, such as building density. The second source is municipal “police power,” which permits towns to adopt environmental regulations, as long as they’re consistent with state law, when needed to protect people, property, and general welfare. Together, these authorities give municipalities flexibility to craft and enforce environmental safeguards.

He highlighted tree protection ordinances as a clear example of validated municipal authority: In “New Jersey Shore Builders Association v. Township of Jackson” (2009), the New Jersey Supreme Court upheld Jackson Township’s ordinance that required developers to replace removed trees or pay into a dedicated planting fund, formally recognizing the critical role trees play in stormwater management and climate resilience.

Michael also reviewed MS4 permit requirements, which obligate municipalities to manage stormwater across public and private development. Beyond the permit itself, he emphasized that municipal land use boards have an independent responsibility to ensure compliance with state stormwater rules and cannot simply defer to NJDEP. To support municipalities in meeting these obligations, he highlighted several useful resources, including The Watershed Institute, New Jersey Future, Sustainable Jersey, ANJEC, and NJDEP.

Watch the Full Webinar

Whether you serve on a governing body, land use board, or environmental commission, or work as an engineer, planner, or attorney, the full webinar offers practical insight into how local ordinances shape environmental outcomes. Community members and neighborhood advocates will also find the discussion clear, accessible, and directly relevant to how development decisions affect their town.

Watch the full webinar here:

The Watershed Institute regularly hosts workshops on stormwater management, watershed protection, and climate resilience. Click here to explore their extensive library of recorded webinars and sign-up for the next one.

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