What You Need to Know

• The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“NJDEP”) published a Notice of Substantial Change on July 21, 2025 to significantly revise its proposed Resilient Environments and Landscapes (“REAL”) rules that will impose new development restrictions to mitigate coastal flooding. This opened a second 60-day comment period before final adoption, which closed on September 19, 2025.
• The revised proposal reduces the added coastal flood elevation requirement from 5 feet down to 4 feet above FEMA’s 100-year base flood level, reflecting updated sea-level rise forecasts.
• NJDEP removed a controversial 3% impervious cover limit for projects in new Inundation Risk Zones (“IRZ”), easing what many feared would be a de facto building ban in coastal flood-prone areas.
• Affordable housing developments are explicitly recognized as serving a “compelling public need,” making them eligible for hardship exceptions.
• A 180-day grandfathering period will allow projects with complete applications filed within six months of the REAL rules’ effective date to be reviewed under current regulations, rather than being immediately subject to the new rules on the effective date.
• The final rule adoption is expected by late 2025 or January 2026, giving stakeholders additional time to prepare.

The Initial REAL Rule Proposal

On August 5, 2024, NJDEP published its long-anticipated REAL rule proposal in the New Jersey Register as part of Governor Murphy’s NJ Protecting Against Climate Threats (“NJ PACT”) initiative.  The sweeping 1,044-page proposal sought to update New Jersey’s land use and environmental regulations to address anticipated coastal flooding caused by climate change.  We discussed the rule proposal in a prior blog post.

Key features of the original REAL proposal included imposing a hefty +5 feet “Climate Adjusted Flood Elevation” above FEMA flood levels in areas subject to tidal flooding, creating new “Inundation Risk Zones” in coastal areas projected to face tidal inundation by 2100, and changing stormwater, wetlands, and coastal development standards statewide.  The ambitious proposal prompted strong pushback from many quarters, including shore towns, developers, and business groups.  Critics warned that a 5-foot flood elevation buffer and a 3% impervious cover cap in IRZs could stifle development and drive up costs in an already expensive market.

In response to the extensive public comments and new scientific data, NJDEP issued a Notice of Substantial Change to the proposal on July 21, 2025.  The notice outlined the revisions (described below) to the proposed rule and required an additional round of public input before the rules can be finalized.

Key Changes to the REAL Rule Proposal

The Notice of Substantial Change makes several targeted revisions to the REAL proposal, though it leaves much of the climate-adaptation framework intact.  The most important changes to the proposed standards are:

1. Lower Flood Elevation Requirement (Tidal Areas): NJDEP is reducing the extra margin of safety for coastal flooding from +5 feet to +4 feet above FEMA’s 100-year flood elevation.  NJDEP justified this one-foot reduction by looking to updated climate modeling that suggests a slightly less severe sea-level rise scenario (approximately 4.4 feet by 2100, rather than 5.1 feet) under current emissions trends.  Practically, this change will shrink the newly regulated flood zone somewhat; thousands of acres and structures that would have been mapped into flood hazard areas under a 5-ft rise may now be excluded.  For projects that remain in flood zones, the required design elevations for new or substantially improved construction are 1 foot lower than originally proposed, potentially saving construction costs.

2. Inundation Risk Zone (IRZ) – No 3% Impervious Cap: Under the original REAL proposal, areas designated as IRZ (the lands likely to be subject to daily tidal flooding by 2100) were to be treated as “special areas” under the Coastal Zone rules with only 3% of a site allowed to be covered by impervious surfaces.  This stringent cap drew heavy criticism from shore municipalities and builders, who feared it would bar all building on many coastal parcels.  NJDEP officials have now clarified that the intent was not to create blanket “no-build zones,” and in the amended proposal they eliminate the IRZ impervious cover rule entirely.  However, IRZ projects must still contend with extra analyses.  For example, the proposal requires an Inundation/Impact Assessment and an alternatives analysis for IRZ-triggered projects.

3. Hardship Exceptions – Affordable Housing and “Compelling Public Need”: The Flood Hazard Area Control Act rules allow applicants to request a hardship exception from strict compliance in limited cases.  One criterion for a hardship exception is demonstrating a “compelling public need” for the project, such that denial would adversely affect public health, safety, or welfare.  The revised REAL proposal formally codifies that affordable housing developments serve a compelling public need.  Practically, this means a developer of an affordable housing project in a flood zone will have an easier time obtaining NJDEP approval to deviate from certain flood standards, provided that public safety is not unreasonably compromised.  The NJDEP Commissioner has noted that even with this allowance, such projects may be required to adopt extra mitigation measures to protect residents.

4. “Dry Access” Requirements – New Flexibility: Under existing flood hazard rules, new multi-family residential buildings in a flood hazard area must have at least one route of access (road or walkway) that would remain dry and passable during a design flood event (often meaning built above flood elevation).  The original REAL proposal would have extended some of these access elevation requirements even further.  However, the amended proposal will allow applicants to request relief from strict dry access mandates if they can demonstrate that emergency services can safely reach the building during flood events.

5. Grandfathering Provision: Under the original proposal, the REAL rules would have applied to any application not deemed complete by the effective date.  The amendment relaxes this:  any application deemed complete within 180 days after the rules’ effective date can be reviewed under the pre-REAL regulations.  In effect, there will be a 6-month transition window after the rules are adopted.  After that, any new applications (or those not completed in time) must comply with REAL.

6. Regular Updates Depending on Climate Data: The revised proposal mandates that NJDEP revisit the precipitation and sea-level rise projections at least every 5 years and adjust the regulations if needed.  This means that the 4-foot increased flood elevation requirement could be raised through subsequent amendments in the future as new scientific data emerges.

Next Steps

As mentioned, the 60-day comment period for the amended proposal ended on September 19, 2025.  NJDEP has indicated that it aims to adopt the REAL rules by late 2025, or January 2026 at the latest.  The adoption notice, when published, will include responses to comments and the final version of the rules (which could incorporate further minor tweaks).

Even with the recent concessions, the REAL rule represents a significant tightening of New Jersey’s development standards in flood-prone areas.  Projects that were once considered routine may now face new hurdles.  Moreover, construction in coastal and floodplain areas will likely become more expensive under REAL.  Raising structures to meet the elevation requirements, using flood-resistant materials, and designing stormwater systems for stronger storms all involve additional upfront costs.  However, from the state’s perspective, new developments under the proposed REAL rules should be better protected against future floods, reducing long-term damage and recovery costs.

For more information, please contact the author, Michael Antzoulis, at mantzoulis@riker.com, or any attorney in our Environmental Practice Group.