New Jersey Highlands CouncilThis anaylsis is the direct result of efforts and mandates to determine the amount and type of human development and activity that the ecosystem of the Highlands Region can sustain while still maintaining the overall ecological values thereof, with special reference to surface and ground water quality and supply. Riparian Area Integrity is defined as an area's ability to provide water protection and ecological function. These functions include nutrient and sediment filtration, stream bank stabilization, wildlife migration corridors and habitat, storm water and flood water storage, and stream water quality protection. The NJ Highlands Council's characterization of riparian area integrity involves the assessment of existing land use and land cover condition. Using the riparian area map as the base map, land use within riparian areas were analyzed through assessment of land use and road intensity information. NJDEP Land Use/Land Cover data and Highlands/NJDOT Roads data was used to determine land use within Highlands riparian areas. Land use/land cover conditions for for each riparian area polygon were extracted and summarized to the HUC14 subwatershed level. The Riparian Integrity Scores are reported at the 14-digit hydrologic unit (HUC14) level. Riparian Integrity Scores are evaluated based on the land conditions that impact the Riparian Area within the subwatershed. The following land use parameters were evaluated for each riparian area polygon: impervious surface coverage (NJDEP Land Use/Land Cover), agriculture land use (NJDEP Land Use/Land Cover), number of road crossings per linear stream mile by HUC14 (NJDOT), natural vegetation ((NJDEP Land Use/Land Cover), and water/wetland dependent rare, threatened, and endangered species habitat (NJDEP Landscape Project Data)ArcGIS FeatureLayerhttps://hub.arcgis.com/datasets/eb84de775a18470d82fed64c2ec30a24_1engNew Jersey Geographic Information Network (NJGIN) Open Data PortalPublicRiparian Integrity Score [New Jersey]Web servicesNew JerseyLast Modified: 2021-03-11