Environmental Groups, Legislators Urge PA DEP to Adopt Forest Buffer Rule

The Pennsylvania Campaign for Clean Water recently launched its “Buffers 100” initiative to urge the PADEP to propose new regulations that would require minimum 100- foot buffers on new development on all rivers and streams in the Commonwealth.

The proposal has been endorsed by 110 organizations, businesses and municipal organizations from across the state, along with 25 legislators from both parties. The Campaign’s proposal would require new developments to preserve a strip of land at least 100- foot wide from the top of the stream bank, keeping that land in its natural state with native vegetation and trees. The proposal would impact new development only and could not affect existing structures within the buffer zone. Buffers would be built and maintained by developers, at no cost to taxpayers. 

Pennsylvania Environment News, June 20, 2008,  http://www.paenvironmentdigest.com/newsletter/default.asp?NewsletterArticleID=9641&SubjectID=