A Highlands preservation area, in which development would be sharply curtailed and stringently regulated, would encompass 395,000 acres from Mahwah through parts of 12 Morris County municipalities to Holland, according to a map and detailed description released Friday by the sponsors of the controversial Highlands protection legislation.

But the delineation of the area did little to end widespread confusion over how the bill would affect those within its boundaries.

The initial release of the map and boundaries was accompanied by a hard-to-follow 24-page written description that outlined the area using roads, water bodies, railroad tracks, utility right of ways, and even blocks and lots. When a map finally was posted on the Web site of Sen. Robert Smith, D-Middlesex, after 5 p.m., it was without any town boundary lines - the only identifying marks were three interstates and numerous unnamed blue splotches of lakes.

"How could you come up with this kind of sweeping program without a map so the average person can say, 'Where am I? Where does my house fall? My farm?'" asked Assemblyman Guy Gregg, R-Washington Township, a vocal opponent of the legislation.

Proponents felt exactly the opposite.

"It's a very good map, not a big map, but a good map," said Jeff Tittel, head of the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club. "It may sound confusing to people, but they honed in on only the major pieces needed."

Assemblyman John F. McKeon, D-Essex, a co-sponsor of the bill, said, "Now, residents can see more clearly that we're not trying to prevent development in the entire Highlands region, just steer unhealthy development away from the most sensitive areas."

But it's far from clear what land is in - and what is not in - what would be a tightly regulated preservation area.

An analysis of the written boundary lines indicates that most of Chester Township, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Mount Olive, Rockaway Township and Washington Township are in the preservation area, as are parts of Butler, Boonton Township, Montville, Mount Arlington, Randolph and Roxbury. But it was difficult in many cases - and nearly impossible in others - to draw the exact boundary lines because they follow utility right of ways and block and lot references that are meaningless without detailed town tax maps.

Precision mapping is not as critical in the areas north of Route 80 because most of that land already is preserved, much of it in state or county parkland or protected watershed. But south of Route 80, there's more privately owned undeveloped land, including farmland, that would be affected by stricter development controls - if the legislation passes.

Morris County Freeholder Margaret Nordstrom said she isn't sure whether her Long Valley home is in the preservation area, saying one version of the map she saw had omitted her neighborhood from the area. The only section of Washington Township that seems to be outside the preservation area is a small stretch from East Mill Road down to the Hunterdon County border between Fairmount and Old Farmers roads.

"It's not just the map," she said. "The bigger issue is what is going to be allowed to transpire within the preservation area. It's a very large, very complicated bill. There are some provisions that were not thought out as well as they might have been, it became apparent at the hearings this week."

Two hearings, one Monday at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum, and another Thursday in Hunterdon County, drew hundreds of people, many questioning and complaining about the stringent development rules that would govern property within the preservation area.

If enacted, the bill would create the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council to develop a regional master plan for the 800,000- acre Highlands with strict rules governing development within a defined preservation area. The rules for that area would apply to all nonresidential developments, any home development of an acre or more in size and any land coverage of a quarter of an acre or more. Those rules would include the prohibition of any construction within 300 feet of water, a cap of 3 percent on land coverage on existing lots and a prohibition on any construction on steep slopes of 20 percent or more.

To compensate landowners who might not be able to develop their land and towns that would lose potential tax ratables, the legislation calls for a favorable property appraisal system for those who choose to sell their land to the state and additional state aid in an amount so far unspecified for those towns with land in the preservation area.

DEVELOPABLE

Throughout the region, state officials estimate just 146,000 of the 395,000-acre preservation area are developable and would be covered by the tougher regulations. Environmentalists defended the preservation area outlined as appropriate and necessary to protect the state's water supply - water from the Highlands supplies about half of the state's population, most of whom live outside the region.

"Generally, this tracks with our sense of what the preservation area should be," said Tom Gilbert, head of the Highlands Coalition that has been pushing for years for preservation in the area and a member of the Highlands Task Force that recommended the ways to preserve the land, most of which are included in the legislation.

"We've heard that the sky is falling from the builders," he said. "That's a gross exaggeration. In the 800,000-acre region, we're really protecting 150,000 acres."

The New Jersey Builders Association, the most vocal critic of the legislation, stayed silent Friday, saying officials couldn't comment on boundaries they couldn't understand.

"The map, you can't make heads or tails of," said Jefferson Mayor Russell Felter. He said that while "everybody believes in the fundamental reason behind the bill," the omission of some areas from the core - including, apparently, the 1,000-unit Pond View housing site in Rockaway Township - was hard to fathom.

"They can't find water there. That's why it hasn't been built. Then you're leaving it out," he said of the Pond View site. "Areas that should be no-brainers to be in there, aren't."

While Mount Olive Mayor Richard DeLaRoche hadn't seen the map, he was delighted to hear that residential areas in Budd Lake were included in the preservation area, but the International Trade Center and other commercial zones were kept out.

"It sounds like it's very beneficial to the township," said DeLaRoche, a Democrat who supports the bill. "The governor implied there's a certain amount of flexibility here. The basic concept is preserving drinking water for six million people. Of course, it creates a burden for every township, but there are benefits to it, too."

LARGE DEVELOPMENTS

Morris County Freeholder Jack Schrier speculated that his hometown of Mendham Township and other municipalities might opt to join the preservation area because that might help it block some large-scale developments.

"We will consider it," said Schrier, who serves on the Mendham Township Committee.

Aimee Ashley Myers, retail manager at Ashley's Turkey Farm in Mount Olive that appears to be located near the preservation area's border and may be inside it, has mixed feelings.

"In general, I support the goals of the bill," she said. "I think preservation in this area is crucial. We've become way too developed."

But, she added, allowing the governor to appoint all 15 members of the council that would draw up the master plan for the preservation area would give him too much power.

LEAD SPONSORS

Gregg pointed out that not one Democrat represents any of the Highlands communities in the Legislature, yet Democrats are the lead sponsors of the bill.

"Imagine if we (Republicans) were going into Newark and saying, 'You're going to do x, y and z to (Mayor) Sharpe James,'" Gregg said. "We would be pummeled, and rightfully so. It takes some credibility away."

Sen. Robert J. Martin, R-Morris, is the only one of the nine lawmakers representing Morris County who supports the bill. He is a prime co-sponsor of the Senate version.

"There's a lot of misinformation out there, some of which is intended to be that way, and some of which is just anxiety by folks who have legitimate concerns," Martin said. "There are some people who don't want the bill passed in any form, they'll seize on anything.

"It's clear some builders may not be able to gain as much as they could have without the bill, but that's historically true with zoning," he continued. "Anyone who purchased land in the Highlands had advance notice that that there was an effort for a very long time - a decade, even more - to keep it the way it is."

A final hearing on the legislation is scheduled for Earth Day, Thursday, in Trenton. Smith and McKeon said they expect to release the bills from the Senate and Assembly environment committees that day. They said they would listen to suggestions for boundary changes from the public for 30 days after that hearing. Suggestions can be emailed to SenBSmith@njleg.org or AsmMcKeon@njleg.org. The descriptions and the map are available at http://www.senatorbobsmith.org/preserving_the_highlands/.

It is expected the legislation will then head to the appropriations committees of both houses to determine the cost to the state.

* * *

Colleen O'Dea can be reached at codea@gannett.com or (973) 428-6655. Rob Jennings can be reached at rjenning@gannett.com or (973) 989-0652.