Raritan NESE Hearing Gives People A Voice

A People’s Hearing on the NESE Raritan Bay pipeline project will be held today from 4:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Atlantic Highlands Senior Center, 3 Simon Lake Drive, Municipal Harbor. The DEP did not hold a public hearing on the project in the Bayshore area. Concerned environmental and community groups organized a People’s Hearing to give the public a chance to voice their opposition to the project. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club released the following statement:

“We are having our own hearing here today because DEP did not have one.  We are here to make then listen. They cannot just write us off and our concerns about this dangerous and unnecessary project.  The NESE pipeline would cut through environmentally sensitive areas that can also turn up contaminated sentiments in Raritan Bay and the New York Bay. When you cut through a bay like the Raritan, it has an impact on the fisheries as well as the ecology of the Bay. The fish, plants and other living creatures in the Bay would be threatened by this pipeline.

“The NESE pipeline’s path would also cut across numerous contaminated and Superfund sites in Somerset, Middlesex and Monmouth counties. The line would release contaminated stormwater and soils into the environment, making it unable to meet surface water quality standards.  Transco makes the money, Long Island gets the gas, and we get the pipe.

“Transco will destroy critical wetlands for their compressor station and the NESE pipeline, which will be a disaster waiting to happen. Wetlands filter chemicals and sediment out of water before it is discharged into the ocean. They are also critical for mitigating flooding during storm surges. If we destroy important coastal wetlands, we will be seeing more pollution and more flooding in Middlesex and Monmouth County.

“Compressor stations are dangerous for the health, safety, and environment of the people who live near them. They release toxic chemicals such as methane, ethane, and MTBEs, as well as other greenhouse gases. An explosion or leak could threaten communities, destroy important habitat ­­and add pollution to waterways. Transco’s proposal would mean more gas and more pressure, increasing the chance of an accident.

“Transco’s application has also failed to examine the additional threats and effects from worsening climate change, rising sea levels, and increased storm events. An earthquake off Sandy Hook on Tuesday not far from where the pipeline would go registered a 3.0. New York Harbor could have an earthquake as large as a damaging 5.5. We do not want a pipeline near where an earthquake has already occurred. The NESE proposal also does not properly measure or evaluate secondary or cumulative impacts from connected and surrounding infrastructure including the connected pipeline that would cross the Raritan Bay. It is critical that the DEP consider the impacts the NESE project will have and reject the company’s application.

“Williams Transco is already threatening New Jersey with other gas pipelines and infrastructure and the secondary and cumulative impacts of this infrastructure is not included in these applications. Much of the gas from the NESE pipeline is supposed to go out of state or be exported rather than service the people of New Jersey.

“DEP may not want to hear from us, but we are speaking out anyway. The NESE project is clearly unneeded and would be damaging to our environment, our safety, and our chances of reaching Governor Murphy’s 100% renewable goals. DEP must certify that this pipeline will not damage our waterways under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. We believe this project cannot do that because the contaminated sediments and runoff will not meet surface water quality standards. DEP should reject all of the permits, especially the 401 certificate.”