Pine Barrens credits are tracked in a database (Pine Barrens Credit Transactions) from the date the credit certificate is first issued through its final redemption. The Credit Clearinghouse Board also maintains a Pine Barrens credit registry that identifies potential buyers and sellers of credits in addition to letters of interpretation that are currently in effect. The registry is updated on a monthly basis.
A Pine Barrens credit certificate is a document issued on behalf of the Commission which indicates the number of Pine Barrens credits to which the owner of a particular parcel of land is entitled. This document also attests to the fact that the development rights of a particular parcel of land in the Central Pine Barrens have been severed from the land by the recording of a conservation easement, and that these rights are available for sale or use.
Credits can be purchased or obtained for use across municipal boundaries for projects in other towns, either within the Central Pine Barrens or elsewhere in Suffolk County, to satisfy Suffolk County Department of Health Services sanitary wastewater flow requirements for a project. If used to satisfy health department requirements, the project applicant would need to secure permission from both the sending and receiving town to provide to the department. The Town of Southampton is the only town within the Pine Barrens region that requires that when credits are used within the town both the sending parcel (where the credit originated from) and the receiving parcel (project site where credit is used) must be within the same school district.
To learn more about Buying and Selling Credits and to obtain information on credit transactions visit our online document library and select the category "Credit Program". In addition, you can email creditprogram@pb.state.ny.us or call 631-288-1079 wit
h any questions you may have.