For Immediate Release
Contact: Jeff Tittel, NJ Sierra Club, 609-558-9100
Records show that the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. is eligible for an exemption from the Highlands Council to build their proposed 19,000 horsepower natural gas compressor station near the Monskville Reservoir. Highlands Council Executive Director stated in a letter to DEP, “The efforts to avoid, minimize and mitigate for resource impacts are sufficient to find that the project is consistent with the goals of the Highlands Act.”
“The Highlands Council have completely failed to do their job. The Highlands Act was passed to protect the Highlands from projects like this. Instead, the council is giving Tennessee Gas an exemption for their natural gas compressor station. We believe the council is wrong based on the law. Tennessee Gas will destroy the Highlands with a new compressor station. This is the wrong project in the wrong place at the wrong time. An exemption should not be given because this is new infrastructure that will add new capacity,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “This site is in the middle of the Highlands Preserve right next to a C1 stream and above the Wanaque and Monksville reservoir. Now the Council is siding with gas companies over protecting the Highlands. They will give the green light for a compressor station that impact environmentally sensitive area and the drinking water for over 3 million people.”
The proposed 47-acre site off Burnt Meadow Road site is right next to Hewitt Brook and the Wanaque River which flows is connected to Beech Brook, Monksville Reservoir, and Wanaque Reservoir.
“The Highlands Council did not look at climate impacts or secondary and cumulative impacts of the compressor station. It will have damaging impacts to the air, water, and land on this site. The facility will create water pollution with its runoff in the Highlands Forest Preservation Area near two major water supply reservoirs and Category 1 streams. These are the highest quality streams that cannot be degraded by law with no measurable change. However, chemicals from this compressor station will have major impacts to the water quality. There’s even a chance for groundwater pollution which would be detrimental to this region where people rely on wells for drinking water,” said Tittel.
Applications for both compressor station sites in New Jersey are also under state Department of Environmental Protection review. A final decision on both is expected in December. The compressor station work is nonetheless proposed to address long-standing demand for capacity from Consolidated Edison for new home connections in Westchester County, New York, records show.
“DEP should not approve this disastrous project. They should deny Tennessee Gas’s permit because of the impact the compressor station will have on stormwater runoff and c1 streams. These facilities release harmful air pollutants such as NOx, PM2.5, Sox, VOCs, HAPs such as formaldehyde, benzene, and GHG’s A leak or accident will be detrimental to the critical drinking water and to nearby communities. Chromium, benzene and hydrocarbons can get into industrial stormwater runoff that will increase pollution and flooding. This area is like a bowl so whatever goes into the air gets into the water and reservoir through air deposition.,” said Tittel. “Blowdowns are common for these facilities and when done sound very much like a jet engine.”
Tennessee Gas Company’s 300-line project completed in November of 2011 destroyed Lake Lookover. The company was often found to not be in compliance with its own mitigation measures. There were significant erosion problems, especially in areas of steep slopes, resulting in the siltation and destruction of waterways. Since the project, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been documented on the pipeline right-of-way by the Vernon Environmental Commission. Residents along the route have complained of increased flooding and impacts to drinking water wells.
“Tennessee Gas has a proven track record of causing destruction. They caused serious problems at Lake Lookover and Bearfort Waters. Mudslides, erosion and more covered the two lakes with mud and impacted drinking wells. We cannot give them another approval for a compressor station right next to a reservoir. That would simply be a recipe for disaster. The NJ Sierra Club and many other residents and environmental groups have been fighting this disastrous project for years. It has cut an ugly scar through the Highlands and destroyed our woodlands, jeopardizing our water supply. The project still needs approval by FERC and DEP. It is critical that these agencies reject the compressor station.,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “Despite having a new administration, the Highlands Council is still stacked with Christie appointees. This is the consequence of failing to appoint new members to the council who will actually work to protect the Highlands.”