Water in New Jersey Essay -- Environment Environmental Essays

Water in New Jersey Residential, commercial and industrial development is the largest contributors to landscape change in the state of New Jersey. When buildout occurs in one region, development pressure begins in another, virtually insuring the Megalopolis concept of one huge urban corridor stretching between Boston and Washington D.C. Year after year, farmland dwindles, roads become congested, and more residents are left to compete for diminishing natural resources. Desperate measures and newer technologies are incorporated to replace poor planning and lack of vision on behalf of decision-makers caught between competing interests. When the long term health and wellbeing of the established population and the short term gain of a limited number of people compete for vital natural resources there should be no question who's interests should prevail. Water resources tend to be taken for granted in New Jersey and why shouldn't they? Rainfall and runoff from snowfall are plentiful, averaging over forty inches per year. The state is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Delaware River on the other, with reservoirs containing billions of gallons of water, and large underground aquifers in between. It's hard to imagine a shortage of this abundant resource. Under normal conditions, this would be the case, but under drought conditions, as has been experienced throughout the winter of 2001 - 2002, the residents of New Jersey are forced to confront the stark reality of the situation that we may be entering into a severe water supply crisis. Mandatory water conservation and stiff penalties for noncompliance may do what preservation and antidevelopment advocates have been trying to do for decades in the state of Ne... ...ment to New Jersey using water resource concerns as a tool to limit large-scale suburban development. These southern agricultural counties are a unique region where large numbers of people are dependent on valuable groundwater resources to continue living in a healthy environment. References New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, 1993, New Jersey 1992 State water quality inventory report, chapter IV, 44p. Blair, Russell, 2002, Telephone interview with Cape May County Agricultural Agent, March 5, 2002 New Jersey Farm Bureau, 2002, Statistics obtained at website as of March 5,2002, www.njfb.org New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, 2002, Statistics obtained at website as of March 5, 2002, www.state.nj.us/dep/watersupply/ United States Geological Survey, 2002, Statistics obtained at website as of March 3, 2002, www.usgs.gov