Date : Tue, 7 Mar 2017 16:54:55 -0500
NJNGas SRL Pipeline Permits
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) recently granted New Jersey Natural Gas (NJNG) a CAFRA permit. The permit is for the company’s proposed Southern Reliability Link (SRL) pipeline. The pipeline would attach to the Garden State Expansion compressor station in Chesterfield and travel through Burlington, Monmouth, and Ocean counties. It would pass near homes, schools, and even environmentally sensitive forests prone to fires. The project would threaten the Pinelands and increase our state’s dependence on dirty fossil fuels. The project would also harm wetlands and our region’s drinking water.
“This permit approval is a sell-out of the people and environment of New Jersey. Not only did the public come out in record numbers, but more importunately, they and other experts put facts on the record on why this permit shouldn’t be granted. The testimony showed how incomplete, misleading, and even completely false the information from NJNG was. DEP even sent letters to that effect, saying that NJNG had to fix the record. They didn’t do this but the DEP approved it anyway. It’s outrageous that they didn’t listen to the facts put on the record and the damaging impacts to the environment. This rubberstamping is a travesty that will cause water and air pollution while putting people in harm’s way. It clearly violates the rules and these agencies are just doing Christie’s dirty work,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.
In November, the DEP issued a letter to NJNG requesting additional information from NJNG on different concerns brought up by the public at these hearings and on the docket. They wanted more information on the air quality impacts surrounding “lost and unaccounted for gas.” They also requested information on the possible presence of Endangered species such as Swamp Pink, Northern Long-eared Bat, and and Bog Turtle. The letter also asks for information regarding health and safety impacts of the pipeline crossing various contaminated sites, impacts from HDD, impacts to wetlands, and general safety hazards from the pipeline’s construction and operation.
“Even though the DEP had concerns with the application and pipeline, they still approved it anyway. They may as well stand for the ‘Department of Expediting Pipelines’. It’s a ‘build first, look at impacts later.’ The DEP permit has 38 major conditions, 15 mitigation conditions, and 23 standard conditions. These conditions should be met before the permit is given, not after the pipeline is built. They’re turning the route into a laboratory on environmental impacts. Unfortunately, the people and communities will pay the price. This may be like Tennessee Gas Pipeline when they gave approval first then hit them with violations after, once it was built,” said Jeff Tittel. “The DEP is allowing mitigation for many of these impacts but you can’t mitigate for these damages. You can not mitigate for direct taking of Endangered species, destroying wetlands or creating pollution.This type of mitigation doesn’t work and the pipeline will destroy the environment and add pollution to our waterways.”
Over a year ago New Jersey Natural Gas (NJNG) applied for an individual permit which the DEP has been working on it ever since. Since then, the NJDEP has rolled back protections for our streams and buffers and opened our waterways for pipelines and other destructive activities by changing the Flood Hazard Rules. They now determined that a pipeline crossing a stream will “not disturb the stream in any way.” Over a year ago New Jersey Natural Gas (NJNG) applied for an individual permit which the DEP has been working on it ever since. After the change in the Flood Hazard Rules, withdrew their original individual permit and instead applied for a Permit-By-Rule for their Southern Reliability Link (SRL) pipeline. This is a major blow to the 43 streams that the SRL would cross.
“Hundreds of people have spoken out against this permit but the DEP ignored them and granted it anyway. This permit is even worse than the first time NJNG applied because they changed it from an individual permit t a permit-by-rule. This is a loophole big enough to put a pipeline through that they are using to get around environmental regulations. The DEP needs to know that they can’ get away with this sort of thing. We are telling them to close the loophole and require an individual permit instead! Drilling under streams causes pollution and flooding and this will impact our drinking water and our agriculture,” said Jeff Tittel. “This application does not replace the need for a 401 Water Quality Certificate permit. We do not believe that NJNG can get this because of the damage it will do to clean water.”
The Southern Reliability Link pipeline would go through the Pinelands National Reserve. The Pinelands is a UN biosphere reserve and one of the largest sources of fresh drinking water on the east coast. We are seriously concerned that the pipeline crosses New Jersey’s C-1 designated waters and associated wetlands and habitats. Many of these streams carry anti-degradation criteria. This project would put the environmentally sensitive lands, as well as drinking water for thousands of people, at risk.
“If the DEP can do this with NJNG they can do the same with the PennEast Pipeline and other projects in New Jersey. They can’t say HDD has no impacts here and then say it has a impacts elsewhere. This pipeline is clearly a major development, despite the company and Christie Administration saying otherwise. They will dig up along the stream buffers and disturb the vegetation. Pollution from runoff will contaminate the waterways. Even the heat from the pipeline itself will change the water quality. There’s no way that a pipeline would not have significant impacts,” said Jeff Tittel. “The SRL would cause irreparable harm to our environment and water supply. This application does not meet CAFRA Rules, especially in environmentally sensitive areas. The disturbances and environmental impacts will be too great and the environmental impacts are too great. It is also inconsistent with the Coastal Zone Management Plan.”
The SRL pipeline is only part of the bigger push for fracking and dirty infrastructure. The Southern Reliability Link would connect to the Garden State Expansion (GSE) compressor station in Chesterfield. Transco has not yet gotten approval by FERC to build the GSE. Without the compressor station, the pipeline will have nothing to connect to.
“The DEP has once again rubberstamped part of NJNG’s plan to cut a scar through our state and our pinelands. These permits should never have been granted; they will use dangerous loopholes to get around the system and ruin our environment. They want to dig under important steams and threaten environmentally-sensitive waterways. We don’t need this pipeline or the safety and health consequences that will come with it. The SRL pipeline is only part of the bigger push for fracking and dirty infrastructure. The DEP have sold out the people of this region and allowed more flooding and pollution from this pipeline!” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “One of the condition calls for the approval of the Pinelands Commission, which we are already challenging in court. We’ll still in court over the Pinelands Commission’ approval of the South Jersey Gas pipeline through the Pinelands. The Christie Administration is continuing to break their own rules to ram through these dangerous pipelines. We will keep fighting to stop these dangerous and damaging projects from ruining our state!”
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Jamie Zaccaria Administrative Assistant New Jersey Sierra Club office: (609) 656-7612 https://www.facebook.com/NJSierraClub * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Received on 2017-03-07 13:54:55