The Legislature finds and declares that this State has a rich natural heritage which is in danger of disappearing as the State continues to experience economic and industrial growth; that a program to conduct an inventory of rare plants, animals, and natural communities throughout New Jersey was established in 1984 through a cooperative agreement between the Department of Environmental Protection and The Nature Conservancy, a nonprofit conservation organization; that this program is providing up-to-date information on rare species and natural communities to planners, developers, and conservation agencies for use in resource management, environmental impact assessment, and both public and private land protection efforts; that this program enables the State to share information, in a national network, with the more than 40 other states with comparable programs; that the continued success and usefulness of the program is dependent upon continuously updating and refining the information in the inventory; that, by design, The Nature Conservancy intended to end their participation in the program after fiscal year 1987 but has temporarily extended their participation pending the establishment of a formal program; the Legislature therefore determines that in order to preserve the State’s natural diversity the Natural Heritage Program needs to be formally recognized and established.

L. 1988, c. 127, s. 1.