On July 15, 2026, the New Jersey Appellate Division upheld important amendments to the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan that protect the critical Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer from harmful water diversions. In the case, In Re Challenge of Clayton Sand Company to December 4, 2023 Amendments to N.J.A.C. 7:50-1.1 et seq., No. A-1476-23, a sand mining company sued the Pinelands Commission seeking to invalidate the amendments, and EELC represented the Pinelands Preservation Alliance (PPA) as amicus curiae in support of the Commission. PPA argued that the Commission acted well within its authority to amend the water rules and heighten water protection in the Pinelands, and that the Court should decline to import the federal Loper Bright standard to New Jersey. In ruling in favor of the Commission, the Court declined to apply Loper Bright, and found that the arguments made by the company “misconstrue[] the [Pinelands Protection Act] by disregarding its overarching purpose of protecting and preserving the water resources as well as the land of the Pinelands and the authority the Commission was given to fulfill that purpose.”