EnviroPolitics Blog

EPA meeting July 27 on cleanup of South Plainfield Superfund site

From the Environmental Protection Agency

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing an opportunity for public input on changes to the cleanup plan to address contaminated soil and debris at the Woodbrook Road Dump Superfund site in South Plainfield, New Jersey.

EPA has prepared a document called an Explanation of Significant Differences to summarize the changes and the reasons for them.The proposed changes that are being announced today document that the estimated cost of the selected cleanup rose from $45.4 million in 2018 to $70 million in 2023 due in part to inflation and increased construction costs. In addition, in 2021, New Jersey created the Peter J. Barnes III Wildlife Preserve which includes the Woodbrook Road Dump Site.

30-day public comment period for the proposed Explanation of Significant Differences begins July 14, 2023. EPA will host a public meeting at the South Plainfield Township Courtroom on July 27, 2023, at 6:30 pm to explain the cleanup proposal.

“EPA values community input and involvement as we work to clean up Superfund sites,” said Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia. “This site is part of a large conservation area in South Plainfield, but it has been polluted by household and industrial waste for decades. After careful re-evaluation, EPA has made a few updates to the original remedy, which the public can review and comment on.”

In 2020, EPA reviewed the selected cleanup plan for the site. The results of EPA’s review, carried out in coordination with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, are presented in the proposed Explanation of Significant Differences. The review confirmed that the 2013 selected cleanup plan remains the best option.

EPA’s cleanup plan for the site was originally documented in a 2013 Record of Decision and modified in a 2018 Explanation of Significant Differences. The cleanup plan includes:

Removing an estimated 4,000 cubic yards of soil and debris that contains capacitors, capacitor parts and PCB-contaminated soil and debris with PCB concentrations greater than 100 parts per million (ppm) to an approved off-site disposal facility.
Removing an estimated 143,000 cubic yards of soil and debris that contains PCBs at concentrations greater than 1.1 ppm to an approved off-site disposal facility.

Written comments on the proposed Explanation of Significant Differences may be mailed or emailed to Diane Salkie Sharkey, Remedial Project Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 290 Broadway – 18th Floor, New York, NY 10007, Email: salkie.diane@epa.gov.

For additional background and to see all of the changes in the proposed Explanation of Significant Differences, visit the Woodbrook Road Dump Superfund site profile page.

If you liked this post, you’ll love our daily environmental newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed daily with the latest news, commentary, and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation.

EPA meeting July 27 on cleanup of South Plainfield Superfund site Read More »

Public hearing July 27 on Atlantic Shores cable burial plan involving 11 acres of AC’s Bader Field

By Emma Desiderio, Atlantic City Press

ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind is proposing to use 1.7 acres of beach between South Texas and Iowa avenues, a portion of Bader Field and a portion of a city park for the installation of underground transmission lines, according to legal notices published recently by the company.

A public hearing for its proposal will be held later this month.

According to the legal notices, the company plans to use about a half-acre on Albany Avenue at Bader Field and about 0.32 acres on Fairmount and Sovereign avenues at the Pete Pallitto recreation fields.

The project is also expected to temporarily impact about 11 acres of parkland at Bader Field.

The properties are owned by the city and subject to the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Green Acres restrictions, and will require an application for a major diversion that must be approved by the DEP’s commissioner and by the State House Commission.

A public scoping meeting is required before Atlantic Shores can submit a formal application for the diversion of parkland.

The public meeting will be held at 6 p.m. July 27 in City Council Chambers at City Hall, 1301 Bacharach Blvd.

Read the full story here

Public hearing July 27 on Atlantic Shores cable burial plan involving 11 acres of AC’s Bader Field Read More »

NJ rejects as too expensive all in latest round of large-scale solar proposals. But the BPU won’t dislose its acceptable price

State also yanks from agenda its controversial plan to get the gas out of buildings

By Tom Johnson, NJ Spotlight

It wasn’t a good day Wednesday for advancing clean-energy goals at the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.

The state agency rejected proposed solar projects that would have generated more than 300 megawatts of electricity and it postponed action on a much-touted plan to begin electrifying buildings, the second-biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in New Jersey.

The twin setbacks marked the latest turbulence encountered by the Murphy administration in aggressively pushing its goal to shift to a 100% clean-energy economy, an issue now facing the most sustained opposition of Gov. Phil Murphy’s first six years in office.

Denying approval of any of the solar projects proposed in the board’s initial competitive solar solicitation appears for now to be the more consequential action. The solicitation was developed by BPU staff to allow larger-scale solar installations of at least five megawatts to be built at a less expensive cost than much of the solar arrays, including those installed on single-family homes, built in the past.

The solicitation this past spring attracted plenty of interest, with developers seeking approval to build more than 300 megawatts, the goal set by the BPU. But all the projects exceeded confidential price caps set by the agency, leading the commissioners to reject them all.

BPU staff blamed regulatory uncertainty and cost increases as factors in the solar developers failing to come under the price caps, which have never been made public and kept private even from the developers seeking approval for their projects.

The four commissioners (one was absent) unanimously approved the staff recommendation without any comment or debate. A second solicitation is now projected to be held this October and the board will look at revising their assumptions, according to a board order.

“It’s absolutely unbelievable,’’ said Fred DeSanti, executive director of the New Jersey Solar Energy Coalition. “Unless they bother to revise the price caps, why bother? To reject all 300 mw is to say their modeling is better than the markets.’’

Lyle Rawling, founder and president of Advanced Solar Products in Flemington, called the solicitation a “big setback.’’

It is difficult to assess blame, Rawling said, because of the confidential nature of the price caps. “We don’t know whether the industry blew it or the BPU. We can’t work on the problem until we know where it came from,’’ Rawling said.

In deferring action on a building decarbonization plan, BPU President Joseph Fiordaliso said there had been a lot of input on the proposal from stakeholders, and the board wanted it all to be considered. The proposal was only unveiled early last month.

Fiordaliso said the issue would be taken up at a later board meeting, but some sources suggested it could be voted on at the board’s next meeting later this month. The plan is opposed by the state Division of Rate Counsel, legislators and some business lobbyists.

Read the full story here

NJ rejects as too expensive all in latest round of large-scale solar proposals. But the BPU won’t dislose its acceptable price Read More »

NJ Republicans continue to pound Murphy over ocean wind policy

From the NJ Senate Republicans

He took $1 BILLION from utility customers and gave it to a HUGE foreign wind developer.

New Jersey families and businesses are already paying higher electric bills to build offshore wind farms.

Ørsted, a Danish company, was supposed to return that money to ratepayers to offset the cost of utility bills.

Instead, they threatened to walk away from their offshore wind project unless they got to keep the $1 BILLION.

Trenton Democrats IGNORED THE COST to New Jerseyans and RUBBER STAMPED THE BAILOUT.

ANOTHER WIND DEVELOPER is already lining up for ANOTHER BAILOUT that will raise utility bills even higher.

“Ørsted is realizing that wind farm projects don’t make economic sense without major government subsidies, so now they’re looking for a huge handout at the expense of utility customers. We shouldn’t give it to them.” – Senator Ed Durr (R-3), June 28, 2023.

“Democrats like Governor Murphy who often complain about corporate welfare had absolutely no problem giving $1 billion to a foreign wind farm developer at the expense of New Jersey ratepayers. Other wind farm developers are already lining up at the trough of big government begging for their own bailouts, which Governor Murphy is likely to give them.” – Senator Michael Testa (R-1), July 6, 2023.

Click here to watch the video.

If you like this post you’ll love our daily environmental newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed daily with the latest news, commentary, and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation.

NJ Republicans continue to pound Murphy over ocean wind policy Read More »

45’ TIBOR Tug Added to Barnegat Light Reef Site

From NJDEP Fish and Wildlife

On June 29, 2023, the NJFW Marine Resources Administration’s Artificial Reef Program sunk the 45’ TIBOR Tug on the Barnegat Light Reef Site. Built in 1957, the TIBOR Tug was originally used as a coastal tug around New York Harbor. It was also part of the Nautical Museum in Toms River for many years where it went into a state of disrepair.

Last year, Tibor Heteny, the vessel’s owner, donated it to the NJ Artificial Reef Program, specifically to be used as artificial reef habitat. The donation was graciously accepted and the Artificial Reef Program worked with Kurt Deyback at the Lighthouse Point Marina and Yacht Club in Toms River to ensure that the vessel met the requirements of the artificial reef guidelines for reefing vessels.

A special thank you to The Sportfishing Fund and the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association for their help in making this possible.

TIBOR Tug Deployment Video

Don’t miss environmental news like this Click for free updates

45’ TIBOR Tug Added to Barnegat Light Reef Site Read More »

Recycled glass from one NJ county plugged that massive I-95 hole

Plant manager Ryan Gregor holds handfuls of crushed glass at the Burlington County recycling facility in Westampton. All the crushed glass produced there goes to AeroAggregates, which uses it to create glass foam like that used to patch a fire-damaged portion of I-95 in Philadelphia.

P. KENNETH BURNS, WHYY NEWS | JULY 6, 2023

Much has been said about the fill material propping up the temporary lanes built after the I-95 collapse. Particularly, how the material, which looks like a wall of pumice stone, is made of processed, recycled glass.

To be clear, no one is driving over broken glass jars or beverage bottles.

Eddystone, Pa.-based AeroAggregates sourced the refill substance from a New Jersey plant.

‘It was full tilt’: The triumph of Eddystone’s Aero Aggregates in the Interstate 95 rebuild

For the past four years, Burlington County has provided more than 7,000 tons of glass to AeroAggregates to make their foam glass material.

*Burlinton County Commissioner Tom Pullion stands before piles of crushed glass at the county recycling facility in Westampton*.

“We wouldn’t have this type of recycled material available if our residents didn’t take the time to sort [it] out and recycle,” said Burlington County Commissioner Deputy Director Tom Pullion. Overall, he adds, more than 84 million pounds of recyclable material — cardboard, glass, and plastic — has been kept out of landfills.

Pullion said the county and AeroAggregates have had a working relationship for the past several years.

“It’s been going quite well to the point that we manufacture approximately 10% of their total [amount of materials] for the year,” Pullion said.

The county collects recycling from all 40 of its municipalities.

Read the full story here

Recycled glass from one NJ county plugged that massive I-95 hole Read More »