About the Highlands

VIEW LIST OF MUNICIPALITIES WITHIN THE 4-STATE HIGHLANDS REGION OF NY, NJ, PA & CT

Just beyond the eastern seaboard where large cities and suburbs  merge into the nation’s most densely populated region, over three  million acres of forested ridges, fertile farmland, streams, lakes and  reservoirs form the regional landscape called the Mid-Atlantic  Highlands. The four-state Highlands Region reaches from from  northwestern Connecticut across New York’s Lower Hudson Valley, through  northern New Jersey and southeastern Pennsylvania, and on to the  Maryland state line. The Highlands Region represents a modern-day  frontier between the Appalachian Mountains and the urban lands along the  Atlantic Coast. In 2004, the 108th Congress passed the Highlands  Conservation Act in part to “recognize the importance of the water,  forest, agricultural, wildlife, recreational, and cultural resources of  the Highlands region, and the national significance of the Highlands  Region to the United States.”

The Highlands provide essential goods and resources that ensure the  survival and economic property of the 25 million people who live within  an hour’s drive of the four state region. As the backyard for the nearby  urban complex, this region supplies communities with clean drinking  water, protects critical wildlife habitat, provides impressive  recreation and tourism opportunities and distinctive places to live. The  Highlands Region hosts more than 14 million recreation visits annually,  more than Yellowstone National Park. Careful protection, management,  and use of the natural resources located in this nationally significant  region are essential for the long-term sustainability.

New Jersey’s Highlands stretch about 60 miles, from Phillipsburg in the  southwest to Oakland in the northeast. They lie within portions of seven  northwest New Jersey counties — Bergen, Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic,  Somerset, Sussex, and Warren — and include 88 municipalities within the  legislated region. NOTE:  The Great Swamp is included in this area.

 The NJ Highlands provides nearly two-thirds of New Jersey’s population,  6.2 million people, with clean drinking water. A large sector of the  State’s industrial base also relies on abundant clean water from the  Highlands. 

LEFT:  Map of the 332 municipalities in 16 counties that depend upon the Highlands for all or some of their water supply. 

Learn More at https://njhighlandscoalition.org

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