Sparta commission presses for updated tree ordinance, considers native-plant guidance

Sparta's Environmental Commission spent substantial time on June 11 reviewing a revised tree ordinance and related stormwater (MS4) compliance issues, and members discussed drafting a concise native-plant guideline for inclusion in the master plan.

Chair Neil Sauerwein told the commission the revised tree ordinance was due in 2025 and that their MS4 plan does not appear current on the town website, prompting concern about compliance. Commissioners said they received feedback from the Department of Environmental Protection indicating some exemption language in the town's 3-for-1 tree removal/replacement wording needs removal to meet state guidance.

Commission members urged circulating a prior draft among the group, consolidating suggested replacement trees and working with the town engineer to align ordinance language with MS4 and stormwater regulatory updates. "We should be able to refer to the tool," a member said of the ERI mapping discussion and master-plan integration.

Separately, the commission discussed a native-plant ordinance to give applicants and residents clear, locally appropriate planting recommendations. Robert Otto suggested producing a short list of three to five preferred species for typical local conditions, drawing on Rutgers resources, the Sussex County native-plant society and local landscapers; members also mentioned including rain-garden planting lists as an appendix.

Next steps include circulating the earlier tree-ordinance draft, confirming the engineer's input, and preparing a short native-plant guidance list that the commission can propose for master-plan incorporation.