Changing Landscapes in the Garden State: Land Use Change in NJ 1986 through 2020

This report is part of an ongoing series of reports examining New Jersey’s urban growth and land use change since 1986. The 2020 state land use/land cover dataset is the seventh in the series since 1986, representing six time periods: T1 (1986-1995) to T6 (2015–2020). The analysis reported herein focuses on the change in the state’s land use/land cover occurring between the spring of 2015 and spring of 2020 based on the DEP New Jersey Land Use/Land Cover Change (NJLULCC) data set. Conversion of green space to new urban development in New Jersey has continued to slow from its historic high pace of new urban development in the 1990’s and 2000’s. Between the year 2015 and 2020 (T6), New Jersey expanded the amount of urban land by 18,802 acres, equivalent to a rate of 3,760 acres of new urban development per year. This rate represents a continuation of the trend of decreasing amount of urban development initiated during the Great Recession of 2008. In comparison, urban development grew at a pace of 16,852 acres per year in the late 1990’s. This report undertook a more in-depth examination of urban development within floodplain and riparian zones. Statewide, between 1986 and 2020, Urban land use area increased by 7.0% to cover 16.7% of the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA). Urbanization in the SFHA puts people and infrastructure at higher risk due to the adverse impacts of flooding. Urban development outside the SFHA but within the New Jersey Design Flood Elevation (DFE) zone built prior to the 2023 rule may also be at heightened risk from more intense future flooding if not sufficiently hardened or built above potential flood heights. The state recognizes the risk and has put these new rules in place to prevent loss of life and property.