Contact Jeff Tittel, 609-558-9100

Margate Dune Project Stopped Because of Bacteria-filled Ponds

The sand dune project in Margate has been stopped because of bacteria-filled ponds that blocked access to parts of the beach. A state judge has ordered a remedial plan because the project was interfering with residents’ ability to enjoy the beach. The New Jersey Sierra Club opposed this project from the beginning because we said it would not work and piling sand would lead to other health and environmental problems. The judge was also concerned about the timing of the project because it was during the tourist season that many businesses depend on. Margate residents fought the beach replenishment project, but lost a legal battle in April. In February, another Judge originally allowed the project to go through, even though an engineering report warned the beach could turn into a lagoon full of garbage and feces.

“Christie’s revenge to close Margate’s beaches for a beach replenishment project has failed and is being shutdown. The Governor wanted to pile sand in front of a bulkhead, which is like a seawall and will wash away during the next storm. We opposed this project in the first place because we said it would not work and put people and property at risk. Now that there are bacteria filled ponds, the Court has postponed the project, but they originally let this go through without looking at environmental or health impacts. This is good for the community and local businesses who depend on tourism in the peak season, but the problem is this now these beaches could be a health hazard lagoon full of garbage and feces,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “In an abuse of power, the Christie Administration first issued payback against people who opposed this project by prohibiting residents from enjoying the beach and threatening local businesses during their peak season. Now the community needs to deal with bacteria filled ponds that further risk tourism and people’s health.”

After the town of Margate lost in Court to require dunes on their beaches, they were held hostage to the Christie Administration’s plan to pump sand on their beaches all summer long. The Christie Administration filed an eminent domain action against the city of Margate because they did not give up 87 municipally-owned lots to the US Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) to construct a bulkhead project. We were opposed to this project because it will not protect against storm surges and flooding on Absecon Island. Now instead of building the dune project, the Christie Administration plans to dredge the beaches and install heavy pipes to pump in sand, including noise and light pollution during the peak of the summer.

“The Court has sided with the residents of Margate to post-pone the Christie Administration’s beach project, which will ultimately fail. It was shameful that they were blocking off four blocks at a time and residents and businesses will be unable to utilize the beach 24/7, which will last the entire summer. The problem is the Court originally let this project go through and helped caused a health hazard with bacteria filled lagoons. This would have never happened if it wasn’t for Christie’s retribution against Margate and is part of the Administration’s attack on science,” said Jeff Tittel. “Instead of building actual dunes to fortify our beaches and protect from storm events, the Christie Administration was pumping sand on a beach. Now residents are at risk from ponding water that can help breed mosquitoes that cause disease. Once this project is built, residents will also have a false sense of security, while our taxpayer dollars are washed out to sea because just pumping sand on a beach doesn’t work.”

The Administration has also rolled back rules to protect us from flooding including the Coastal Area Facilities Act, which has opened more coastal areas to development. They have also proposed to weaken the Flood Hazard rules and the Water Quality Management Planning rules which will put more people and property at risk and lead to more water pollution impacts. We believe the land that the state acquires for coastal restoration should be converted back to natural systems. Beaches with natural systems of dunes fair better in storm events. Instead the Christie Administration has promoted man-made hard infrastructure like bulkheads and walls will only cause temporary relief from storms, if that. They end up eroding beaches and making the problems worse in the long run. By just pumping sand on a beach this plan will fail.

“Without rule dunes, the people of Margate are doomed. The purpose of dunes is to absorb the energy from waves and storm surges. This is an important way to reduce flooding and storm impacts, but the Christie Administration has looked the other way. Instead of requiring buyouts that open up waterfront while by offering flood storage during storms and helping protect surrounding properties, they have promoted over-development on our coast that puts more people and property in harms way,” said Jeff Tittel. “Instead of creating flood storage areas, moving people out of harm’s way, stopping flooding vulnerable areas, and elevating to safe levels, the Christie Administration has put more people at risk. Projects like these have wasted important federal funds, while could have used the money for buyouts.”

“Instead of real policies to deal with coastal issues, the Governor is hiding behind dunes to cover up failed coastal policies. The DEP closed the office of Climate Change, ended the Coastal Program for Climate Mitigation and Adaptation, and pulled us out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative all to help mitigate our impact on climate change. The Christie Administration has added loopholes for increased development, passed ineffective CAFRA rules and done much more to weaken our coasts. All the Governor has to show for his time in office is making the shore more vulnerable, while protecting polluters and developers,” said Tittel.

The state has not only failed to protect us from future storms during dune reconstruction, but has not taken into consideration sea level rise or completed suitable FEMA mapping after Hurricane Sandy. We also do not have proper projections are for sea level rise. Without climate change data and projections, we cannot properly build to protect our shores from the results of climate change like sea level rise and storm surges.

“The Christie Administration needs to fix their mistakes with this project and stop just piling sand that will not protect us from sea level rise. This shows failed dune projects not only interfere with people and property, but also public health. Dunes will help prevent the beaches from eroding in the next storm, but instead the Christie Administration has promoted the failed policies of the past. Now as a result Margate is threatened with a health hazard, while people and property are more at risk from future storm surges,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “We spent a billion dollars on beach replenishment over the years and most of these projects keeps failing. All we’re doing is watching sand and millions of dollars getting washed out to sea.”