Monroe County, PA Environmental Rules: Coastal Development (2026)

There is no coastline here, so waterway rules center on the Delaware River, the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, and Brodhead, McMichael, and Pocono Creeks. Under the Flood Plain Management Act (Act 166 of 1978, 32 P.S. §679.101 et seq.), every Monroe County municipality mapped by FEMA must adopt a floodplain ordinance and participate in the National Flood Insurance Program. Building, filling, or clearing in the mapped floodplain or a stream's riparian buffer is restricted; DEP's Chapter 102 riparian buffer rules protect banks along high-quality and exceptional-value Pocono streams. Work in a stream channel or wetland also needs a DEP Chapter 105 water obstruction and encroachment permit.