Pinelands staff report major PDC activity and increased land protection in FY25

Commission staff presented the Pinelands' annual land-protection and PDC bank reports on Oct. 10, highlighting a busy preservation year driven by a substantial severance of Pinelands Development Credits along with steady state and NGO acquisitions.

Amber Mow, planning specialist, said the headline for the year was a large PDC severance that led to about 3,980 acres being preserved in the special agricultural production area, and staff reported state acquisitions including a 260-acre addition to the Pomona Woods Preserve. "Over 3,900 acres were preserved through PDC severance in these special agricultural production areas," Amber said. She added that nonprofit and county acquisitions also increased this year and that total preserved land in the Pinelands is now roughly 488,000 acres, or about 52% of the reserve.

Susan and other staff described the PDC market activity behind the preservation numbers: letters of interpretation in fiscal 2025 allocated 570 rights (a marked increase), and severance activity yielded deed restrictions that unlock issuance of PDC certificates. Staff reported an increase in PDC sales and prices: "The average price in 2024 was just under $19,000 per development right. In 2025, which is edging close to $23,000," Susan said. Staff also described redemption activity where credits were used for residential projects, a warehouse project in Waterford Township and a solar project on a former resource-extraction site.

Staff presented supply-and-demand estimates for the PDC program: an estimated supply of just over 8,900 development rights is available in various forms (on the sellers' list, held by owners, or allocable to sending-area lands), and a demand estimate of about 9,650 rights was presented; staff cautioned these figures are estimates and that demand is a moving target affected by municipal zoning changes, redevelopment plans, and active projects.

Commissioners asked clarifying questions about how and why credits are bought but not immediately redeemed, whether developers buy credits as an investment, and the implications if supply ever ran short. Staff said options include designating new sending areas or allowing the program to mature and end if preservation goals are met. Staff will continue refining PDC reporting and monitoring supply/demand metrics.

Because changes in PDC allocations and severances translate into preserved acreage, commissioners and staff emphasized the PDC program remains central to the Pinelands’ conservation strategy going forward.