Pine Barrens

View north from a fire tower on Apple Pie Hill, the highest point in the New Jersey Pine Barrens.

Lake Atsion in the Pine Barrens

The Pine Barrens, also known as the Pinelands, is a heavily forested area of coastal plain stretching across southern New Jersey. The name "pine barrens" refers to the area's sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soil, to which the crops originally imported by European settlers didn't take well. However, these uncommon conditions enable the Pine Barrens to support a unique and diverse spectrum of plant life, including orchids and carnivorous plants. The area is also notable for its populations of rare pygmy Pitch Pines and other plant species that depend on fire to reproduce (fire is very frequent in the Pine Barrens). The sand that composes much of the area's soil is referred to by the locals as sugar sand.

Despite its proximity to the metropolitan areas of Philadelphia and New York City, and the fact that the Garden State Parkway and Atlantic City Expressway run directly through it, the Pine Barrens remains largely rural and undeveloped. The Pine Barrens also helps recharge the 17 trillion gallon Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer containing some of the purest water in the United States.^[1][2] As a result of all these factors, 1.1 million acres (4,500 km²) of the Pine Barrens were designated the Pinelands National Reserve (the nation's first National Reserve) in 1978, and it was designated a United Nations International Biosphere Reserve in 1983. Development in the Pinelands National Reserve is strictly controlled by an independent state/federal agency called the New Jersey Pinelands Commission. The Pinelands Reserve contains the Wharton, Brendan T. Byrne (formerly Lebanon), and Bass River state forests.

Author John McPhee wrote one of his early books, The Pine Barrens, on the history and ecology of the region in 1967.

History

The fire regime before European settlement is poorly understood, although it is known that Native American fires had maintained the eastern savannas of the United States. Fire has played a major ecological role in the Pinelands, and the ecotypes "suggest that short fire intervals may have been typical in the Pine Plains for many centuries, or millennia."^[3]

During colonial times, the Pine Barrens was home to various industries. Bog iron was mined from bogs, streams, and waterways, and was worked in furnaces at Batsto, Lake Atsion, Ferrago, Hanover, and several other locations. Iron from these early furnaces was instrumental in supplying the American military with weapons and camp tools during the American Revolution and the War of 1812. The bog iron industry fell off in the mid-1800s when iron ore could be mined more cheaply in Pennsylvania. Other industries such as paper mills, sawmills, and gristmills rose and fell throughout the years. Smaller industries such as charcoal-making and glassmaking also were attempted and met with varying degrees of success. Over time, however, the forest reclaimed almost all traces of the Pine Barrens' industrial past. Ghost towns—remnants of these industries—can still be found at various locations, and one, Batsto Village, has been restored to its mid-19th century state.

The Pine Barrens were home to the Kallikaks, a poor, backwoods family who were held up as a case study in genetic inferiority by eugenicists in the early 20th century. Today, it is understood that the facts in the Kallikaks study were misrepresented.^[4] For years, residents of the area were called "Pineys", by outsiders, as a derogatory term. However, today, many Pinelands residents are proud of both the name and the land on which they live.

On July 12, 1928, Mexican aviator and national hero Emilio Carranza crashed and was killed in the Pinelands while returning from a historic goodwill flight from Mexico City to the United States. Flying back from Long Island, he encountered a thunderstorm and crashed in Burlington County. A 12 ft (3.6 m) monument identifies the location of the crash.

Efforts to preserve the Pine Barrens

Despite rapid urbanization of its surrounding land, the Pine Barrens remained largely untouched because its sandy soil was unsuitable for growing most crops, and its iron and charcoal deposits couldn't compete with more readily accessible deposits elsewhere. In 1969, the Pine Barrens averaged a density of 15 people per square mile, compared with 1000 people per square mile in the lands bordering it. There were concerns for the possible destruction of the Pine Barrens by urban sprawl. Amid those concerns was a plan for the construction of a massive jetport and planned city in the Pine Barrens to alleviate congestion in other major airports. The plan was made more attractive by the cheap cost of land and lower incidence of fog in the area.^[5]

The New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve, the country's first National Reserve, was created by Congress under the National Parks and Recreation Act of 1978. The New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve contains approximately 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km²) of land, and occupies 22% of New Jersey's land area. The Pinelands National Reserve was created from the land of seven New Jersey counties. The reserve contains Wharton State Forest, Brendan T. Byrne State Forest and Bass River State Forest. In 1983, the Pinelands was designated a U.S. Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, an agency of the United Nations, and in 1988, it was designated as an International Biosphere Reserve.^[6] Following many years work to preserve the Pine Barrens and educate visitors, Howard P. Boyd and his wife continue to live within the Protection Area of the Pinelands National Reserve.^[7]

Jersey Devil

The Pine Barrens gave rise to the legend of, and are well known mostly because of the Jersey Devil, said to have been born to a local woman named Mrs. Leeds in an area known as "Leeds Point" in 1735. It was said that he was her 13th child and that being an unlucky number he was cursed and thrown into a river. Another story says that it was born a hideous monster which attacked the Mother and Nurses, before flying up and out the chimney and disappearing into the Barrens. Most alleged sightings of the legendary Devil have occurred in or near the Pine Barrens.

The Pine Barrens today

The only industries that still thrive in the Pine Barrens are related to agriculture and tourism. The Pine Barrens is the reason New Jersey grows the third-highest number of cranberries in the country, mostly attributed to the areas around Chatsworth, including Whitesbog which is north of Chatsworth. The first-ever cultivated blueberries were developed in the Pine Barrens in 1916 through the hard work of Elizabeth White of Whitesbog, and blueberry farms are now almost as common as cranberry bogs. A majority of these blueberry farms are found in and around the town of Hammonton. The Pine Barrens are also at risk from increasing development and suburbanization of the area. An endangered species of frog, the Pine Barrens Tree Frog, has a disjunct population there.

Forest fires

Forest fire has been a common occurrence in the Pine Barrens ever since it was first inhabited by people. Most fires in the Pine Barrens are human-caused, which has persisted ever since the Lenape tribes burned the woods to improve hunting conditions. While large fires commonly attract attention, many small fires go unnoticed and are quickly masked by new plant growth.

Forest fires play an important role in regulating the growth of plants in the Pine Barrens. Frequent light fires tend to reduce the amount of undergrowth and promote the growth of mature trees. Forest fire is also a reason why the Pitch Pine is dominant in the Pine Barrens. Pitch Pines are common because of their ability to resist and recover from fire by resprouting directly through their bark (very unusual for pines) and by serotinous pine cones which open only after having been heated by a fire. The prevalence of forest fire allows the pitch pines to dominate over oaks, which by comparison are usually killed outright by a moderate or intense fire. High air temperatures and dry plant undergrowth contribute to the intensity of the fire. While severe fires are uncommon, severe fires at fairly frequent intervals can eliminate species that do not bear seed at an early age. Frequent killing fires keep an area covered with small sprouts.^[8]

While forest fire can pose a danger to property and inhabitants, efforts to battle forest fire attract debate over how to best preserve the Pine Barrens. Preservationists argue that eliminating forest fires would cause the Pine Barrens to become dominated by oak trees. A few areas which had previously consisted of scrub and pitch pine have already become dominated by oak trees due to the lesser frequency of forest fires.^[9]

May 2007 fire

The 2007 forest fire viewed from Barnegat Light

On May 15, 2007, a flare dropped from an F-16 during a training session over the bombing range at Warren Grove in Ocean County, about 25 miles (40 km) north of Atlantic City resulted in an extensive forest fire. On the 18th, the fire was declared contained after burning over 17,000 acres (69 km²) and forcing the evacuation of more than 6,000 residents.^[10]

October 2008 fire

On October 21, 2008, a small brush fire ignited near Atsion Lake, close to where the borders of Camden, Atlantic and Burlington counties converge. It quickly turned into a blazing inferno. It was brought under control about six days later after consuming about 1,950 acres (7.9 km²) ^[11]. Officials blame extremely dry conditions and high winds for the start of the fire.

Gallery

Atsion Lake	Atsion Lake	Atsion Lake	Batsto River
Mullica River	Mullica River	Mullica River	Mullica River

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: New Jersey Pine Barrens

Governance

• New Jersey Pinelands Commission
• NPS National Pinelands Reserve
• Pine Barrens Education Page
• National Park Service: Partnership Wild & Scenic Rivers

History and ecology

• Birds of the Pine Barrens
• Plants of the Pine Parrens
• NJPineBarrens.com - Exploring the Ghost Towns of Southern New Jersey
• American Revolutionary War actions in the Pinelands area

Non-profit organizations and other local interests

• NJ Pinelands and Down Jersey
• Photos of Colliers Mills WMA
• Forked River Mountain Coalition
• Pine Barrens Ecology & Protection - Pinelands Preservation Alliance
• Piney Power.com
• Batona Trail
• South Jersey Tourism Corporation
• Citizens United to Protect the Maurice River and Its Tributaries, Inc.

v • d • e   State of New Jersey Trenton (capital) Topics Demographics · Economy · Elections · Geography · Government · History · Media · Municipalities · Music · People · Politics · Symbols · Transportation · Parks Regions Atlantic Coastal Plain · Central Jersey · Delaware River Region · Delaware Valley · Gateway Region · Gold Coast · Highlands · Jersey Shore · Meadowlands · New York metro area · North Hudson · North Jersey · Pascack Valley · Piedmont · Pine Barrens · Raritan Bayshore · Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians · Southern Shore Region · Skylands Region · South Jersey · Tri‑State Region · West Hudson Counties Atlantic · Bergen · Burlington · Camden · Cape May · Cumberland · Essex · Gloucester · Hudson · Hunterdon · Mercer · Middlesex · Monmouth · Morris · Ocean · Passaic · Salem · Somerset · Sussex · Union · Warren Municipalities Atlantic City · Bayonne · Camden · Cherry Hill · Clifton · East Orange · Edison · Elizabeth · Gloucester Township · Hackensack · Hoboken · Jersey City · Linden · Long Branch · Middletown · Newark · New Brunswick · Passaic · Paterson · Perth Amboy · Plainfield · Princeton · Toms River · Trenton · Union City · Vineland

Coordinates: 39°45′N 74°45′W / 39.75°N 74.75°W / 39.75; -74.75