JACKSON — The sandy “road” to Mount Tabor, one of the highest peaks in the Pine Barrens, is littered with ditches that could swallow a sedan whole. Fortunately, Jason Howell’s truck was up to the task.

“The last time I was here (a year ago), this was not a thing,” Howell said. “We did not have to deal with this.”

He’s referring to the erosion caused by off-roaders, whose illegal, wheel-spinning joyrides have pockmarked Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area and other swaths of the Pinelands. Mount Tabor is a salient example.

This natural wonder, one of the precious spots in the Pine Barrens where you can see over treetops, is scarred on all sides by a half-dozen trenches that run three four deep and wide enough for monster trucks to careen up and over the hill.

Howell and Emile DeVito, conservationists who are trying to get New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection to intervene, shake their heads at the sight.

“This mountain has lasted millions of years because of the fact that it has a hard cap on it and it can’t erode, and now that’s being destroyed by monster trucks and off-road vehicles,” said DeVito, manager of science and stewardship at the New Jersey Conservation Foundation. “It took millions of years to form, and it’s being destroyed in the blink of an eye by completely illegal activities.”

As if on cue, the roar of a monster truck’s engine pierces the air.

“Here they come,” DeVito said.

MORE PINE BARRENS: The Jersey Devils’ Pine Barrens origins

Emil DeVito surveys the damage at Mount Tabor in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area

Stuck in the mud

The fight against illegal off-roading in the Pine Barrens is the focus of a striking documentary titled “Pine Mud.” Released in 2020 by New Jersey filmmaker Jared Flesher and Hundred Year Films, it features Howell, a 35-year-old from Atlantic County who works for the nonprofit Pinelands Preservation Alliance.

Howell is literally knee-deep in the muck on this issue.

In one scene, while patrolling near Forked River Mountains in Lacey, his truck gets swallowed by a massive puddle and remains stuck for hours. In another, he encounters a truckload of off-roading teens who traveled from Virginia and stalled in the mud at Wharton State Forest in Burlington County — and he graciously winches them out.

The documentary depicts Howell putting up barriers and signs to protect a patch of private property within the Pine Barrens, only to have them ripped down by off-roaders who leave vulgar messages behind. He also gets threatened on social media.

Jason Howell of Pinelands Preservation Alliance, looks over damaged land.

Standing at the base of Mount Tabor Thursday, Howell issued a warning to would-be hikers, picnickers and bird-watchers.

“I would definitely not recommend for a family to come out here, because it’s not safe,” he said. “How can you confidently say ‘come here’ when you have dozens of vehicles driving at high speeds trying to get up this hill while you’re trying to take a hike?”

The problem is just as bad in the Pine Barrens’ wetlands, where off-roaders rip up ponds that are home to amphibious creatures and rare plants. “Pine Mud” reports that 85 ponds have been damaged or destroyed.

“The question I find myself asking when I come to a place that’s in trouble like this is, ‘Who’s in charge?’” Howell said Thursday while looking out from Mount Tabor’s peak. “There really isn’t anyone in charge. The DEP has pretty much abdicated responsibility.”

MORE PINE BARRENS:Atlantic White Cedars coming

Tree roots are exposed along the 4-foot trenches caused by monster trucks near Mount Tabor in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area

‘Completely ignored’

The New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve, 1.1 million acres of wilderness that stretches from Jackson to Cape May, was protected from development by Gov. Brendan Byrne in 1979.

“The Pinelands started off with really strong political support 40 years ago, but now the Pinelands is really a political orphan,” Howell said. “There is no strong Pinelands advocate in the statehouse, in the governor’s mansion, even in our federal government.”

In response to an interview request by the Asbury Park Press, a spokesperson for Division of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn LaTourette said the DEP is in conversations about “developing a new map showing where vehicles can and cannot legally drive, launching a permitting system for off-road drivers and stepping up enforcement of regulations.” 

In a statement, LaTourette said, “We are committed to continue listening to stakeholders to ensure that the recreational opportunities at our state properties are inclusive of many interests. Public engagement is key to determining what we all believe are the appropriate places to provide ORV access, the places that are not suitable for those types of vehicles, and how to achieve a balance that is welcoming to everyone.”

DeVito would welcome a detailed map.

“You don’t see any signs out here,” he said along the road to Mount Tabor. “There’s no way to know if this road is open to registered vehicles or not.”

Portions of the Pine Barrens are being destroyed due to all terrain vehicles and large 4-wheel drive trucks. Mount Tabor, a section of Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area, is one of the heavily impacted areas. Jackson, NJ
Thursday, October 28, 2021

With a map, it would be easier to punish offenders. DeVito thinks steep penalties would send the right message.

“If vehicles are confiscated and there was a $5,000 fine, the mindset would change,” he said.

One reason many Pine Barrens offenders come from out of state, Howell said, is better enforcement elsewhere.

“It’s made very clear in other places that ‘this is how we’re going to use the land,’” Howell said. “New Jersey has completely ignored its responsibility to designate places for people to use. People are going to use these places; it’s up to the state to structure that in a way that makes sense for people and for the land.”

A lack of personnel patrolling these woods doesn’t help, and statewide fiscal constraints make it difficult to add manpower.

“There’s not enough resources to keep up with all this damage,” DeVito said.

MORE PINE BARRENS: Mystery of monument to dead pilot solved

In Lacey, a solution

This might seem like a lost cause. The situation at Forked River Mountains shows otherwise. That area was purchased by Ocean County for $15 million in 2019. County officials went about locking out off-roaders, more or less successfully, and began restoration of the degraded terrain.

“The Forked River Mountain is enormously eroded, but they’re working on it,” Howell said.

“Ocean County has done a great job,” DeVito said.

Of course, that’s 7,000 acres out of a million. The point is: Solutions exist for the most troubled spots.

Trails are cut into the Pine Barrens by off-roaders are shown at the Forked River Mountains in Lacey Township Monday, September 16, 2019

“I think we should petition the federal government to make the Pinelands a national park,” Howell said. “It would really help. The National Park Service doesn’t mess around.”

That’s a bold stroke. On a lesser scale, since the Pinelands National Reserve was created by Congress, DeVito sees room for a financial partnership between the state and federal governments to bolster protections.

Whether it’s from federal or county sources, some outside intervention is needed.

“The Pinelands could be our Smoky Mountains,” Howell said. “We have this great opportunity, and the state has no idea what to do with it.”

A catastrophe ahead?

Unfortunately, it might take a catastrophe to get the state’s attention. As Howell’s souped-up truck struggled to negotiate the ditch-strewn paths through Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area, it wasn’t hard to envision.  

“If a fire was to start in here, the forest fire service might have trouble fighting it because of the deterioration of these roads,” DeVito said. “There’s a lot of people living around here (on the area’s outskirts). The forest dries out faster than these puddles. It could become a tinderbox before these puddles become passable.”

A fire pit atop Mount Tabor in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area in Jackson is littered with trash.

At Mount Tabor Thursday afternoon, the rumblings of monster trucks echoed in the distance. None approached the hill during our visit, but fresh tracks dotted the dirt. At the center of the hilltop sits a large fire pit, and inside the pit there are scores of bottles and cans — a trash heap of cheap beer, soda and hard seltzer.

It’s a sad monument of abuse of this natural resource.

This is not what Brendan Byrne intended.

“I’m sure he would be sickened,” DeVito said, “if he could see how this is being ignored.”

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at [email protected].

Source: Asbury Park

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You May Also Like

Actress and longtime far-Left, woke Dem shares her story of walking away from the Democratic Party

When you think of Los Angeles, “hotbed of conservatism” probably isn’t the…

Biden’s dog Commander bit Secret Service agents in at least 24 ‘incidents’ before he was removed from the White House, new documents reveal

President Biden’s beloved German shepherd Commander bit Secret Service agents in at…

Inflatable Barrier Along Rio Grande River? Will Gov. Abbott’s Plan Work to Keep Illegal Immigrants From Crossing Biden’s Open Border?

On Thursday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that the state will be…

President Trump: “We’re Going To Take Back The White House…Sooner Than You Think!”

Last week I brought you a post highlighting all of the things…