Tomorrow’s election for New Jersey’s next governor will have a big impact on the Pinelands, including whether Wharton State Forest continues to have the protections it deserves.
Last year, after years of study and extensive public engagement, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection adopted the Wharton State Forest Visiting Vehicle Use Map. This map provides long-overdue clarity about where visitors can legally drive within Wharton, protecting the forest’s most sensitive habitats while still allowing for extensive public access.
The map can be accessed here. Learn more about the history of advocacy that led to the map’s creation.
Millions of people prize Wharton State Forest for its vast wilderness areas, protected rare species habitat, historic sites, and recreational opportunities, including paddling, hiking, and horseback riding across 124,000+ acres. It contains rare species habitat, wetlands, historic sites, and a vast network of trails for hiking, paddling, horseback riding, and nature exploration. Unfortunately, years of illegal off-road vehicle (ORV) activity, dumping, vandalism, and habitat destruction have taken a toll on this incredible landscape.
Now that the Wharton map has been implemented, visitors to the state forest can drive on over 175 miles of unimproved roads, plus over 57 miles of additional municipal, county, and state roads. In response to input from hunters, DEP recently included an additional 37 miles of roads for in-season access to popular hunting spots. This network of nearly 270 miles of legal driving routes provides enough space for exploration, while clearly defining where motorized vehicles don’t belong.
The map is a commonsense solution that balances recreational access, the protection of fragile Pinelands habitats from illegal off-road vehicle use, and public safety. With a defined network of roads, the New Jersey State Park Service and the New Jersey Forest Fire Service can maintain their access in case of emergencies and fires.
Because the map was adopted by the executive branch, the next Governor of New Jersey can choose to keep it in place, change it, or rescind it altogether. New Jersey voters should keep this in mind on Election Day—TOMORROW, November 4, 2025.
In New Jersey, the Governor wields extraordinary influence over both state policy and environmental protection. Depending on the individual’s priorities, this power can be wielded for tremendous benefit or tragic consequence for the Pine Barrens and the rest of New Jersey. As an example, Governors Byrne, Kean, Florio, and Whitman came of age within the broader environmental movement before they were elected to office. Their political careers were then supported in large measure by that movement, when more than half of the people in the United States ranked environmental and wildlife conservation concerns as a top electoral issue.
We understand the impact that elected officials can have on our environment. That’s why it’s more important than ever for citizens to speak up, share their environmental priorities, and ensure that your position will be represented when critical decisions affecting nature and our environment are made.
The Pinelands Preservation Alliance strongly supports the DEP’s Wharton Vehicle Use Map as a fair, science-based plan that protects the Pinelands while preserving access for everyone who loves this wild and beautiful place.
Wharton belongs to all of us — and its future depends on strong leadership that stands up for conservation, not special interests.