First NJ Governor primary debates tonight; do you care?



Maybe New Jerseyans are just worn out after almost eight years whirling inside the spin cycle of Chris Christie. Maybe the Sturm und Drang out of D.C. has hammered thin our usual zest for politics.

Whatever the cause, the gubernatorial primary elections, less than a month away, have generated little more than yawns.

Last night on NJTV News, Chief Political Correspondent Michael Aaron provided profiles of the four Democratic candidates (above). Tonight, Michael will be back with a look at the Republicans. 

Let’s hope the head-to-heads tonight from Stockton University and during subsequent debates on May 11 (Democrats) and May 18 (Republicans) manage to spark some unexpected interest.

Otherwise, there will be little left to watch between now and November but the guy with all the money slowly pulling away with all the votes.

Both Democrat and Republican debates tonight will be livestreamed at 6:30 and 8 on NJTVNews.org

NJTV News will host the Democratic debate at 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 11 and the Republican debate at 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 18. 


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ICE raid left them scared down on the mushroom farm

At Kaolin Farms in Chester County,  agents arrested 12 mushroom workers after a search
for four others came up empty. Ed Hille photo                                                                                                                          


Michael Matza reports for Philly.news:

ICE raid spooks Chester County mushroom farms

The mushroom farms in Chester County, Pa. have always counted on high volumes of immigrant labor, so it’s not surprising the area was targeted by ICE officials. At the end of April, agents raided a private facility, flashing photos of four men who ostensibly might work there. No one knew or had heard of those men (lawyers say it may have been a ruse), but everyone was questioned anyway, and several were detained and arrested. Now, a couple weeks later, the community is scared and shook. 
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NJ court overrules on procedural grounds DEP permit for wastewater discharge to Rockaway Creek in Highlands


Appellate remands paperwork to DEP, arguing it did not properly follow regulations when issuing original permit

stream


Tom Johnson reports 
for NJ Spotlight:


The state failed to follow the law properly when it granted a permit to discharge wastewater from a treatment facility into Rockaway Creek in Tewskbury Township, according to an appellate court ruling.
In a win for the township, the Raritan Headwaters Association, New Jersey Highlands Coalition, and Sierra Club, the court remanded the case to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
The case is the latest to see the state’s environmental groups in court challenging the actions of the DEP in approving projects over their protests about lands specially set aside by planning laws, such as the New Jersey Highlands Act and Pinelands Protection Act, in recent years.
The decision hinged largely on procedural grounds that the DEP failed to prove it had consulted with the New Jersey Highlands Council before it granted a permit to allow the Bellemead Development Corp. to dump sewage from an office park into the nearby creek, a Category 1 stream, the most pristine type of waterway in the state.

Read the full story


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North Dakota advice for Lancaster as pipe protest looms

Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline opponents prepare to make their stand in Lancaster, Pa  James Robinson photo

Colin Deppen writes for PennLive:

Months after the culmination of a massive pipeline protest in North Dakota, officials there are warning their Lancaster County counterparts to start preparing for what may be a similar showdown between the pipeline industry and its opponents in Pennsylvania.
Construction on the Lancaster County portion of the Atlantic Sunrise pipeline project is expected to begin later this year, and opponents have vowed to prevent its completion through civil disobedience and a live-in protest at the site.  
It’s a similar method to that employed by Native American protesters and their supporters in confronting the Dakota Access Pipeline project in North Dakota last year, a protest that some Atlantic Sunrise opponents from Lancaster County also took part in.
Now, North Dakota officials are looking to impart the law enforcement lessons learned from Dakota Access to officials in Lancaster County, telling them to “Go big” and “Go fast … before things spin out of control,” LancasterOnline.com reports.
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EP Podcast: #22 – Langan’s Nick DeRose discusses the challenges of ‘Emerging Contaminants’ in our water

Our guest on Episode #22 is Nick DeRose, a managing principal at Langan, an international environmental engineering, science and consulting firm.


Nick discusses ’emerging contaminants’ which is the term used
for a number of chemical compounds that are appearing in an alarming number of locations including public drinking water supplies, regionally and across the country.

These chemicals are believed by some to be toxic at very low levels (parts per trillion) and pose significant regulatory and technical challenges for governments, manufacturers and remediation firms that are charged with cleaning them up.

A one-day course at Montclair State University on June 8 will explore the topic in detail. Enviro-Events Calendar has the registration and info link

Click to hear Episode 22  

Two of our most recent episodes addressed the contamination of public drinking sources at military bases in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The chemical culprit in both cases was an ’emerging contaminant.’  

Episode 21 – Toxic water from military bases in Pa and NJ – Part 2

Episode 20 – Toxic water spreading from military bases in Pa and NJ

You can subscribe to our free podcast on:
iTunes (Podcast App on  your iPad, iPhone)
Stitcher (Android)
Player FM
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and other popular podcast services.

It’s easy to do and you’ll never miss a future episode.

Hear all previous episodes 

Questions? Email: frankbrilljr@gmail.com or 609-577-9017

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ICE keeps arresting suspects inside NJ courthouses

Matt Katz reports for NJ Spotlight:

ICE’s presence in courthouses may deter witnesses, victims, and defendants from showing up to testify — making everyone less safe

 NJ Chief Justice Stuart Rabner,

New Jersey’s top judge asked Trump administration officials last month to stop arresting immigrants inside courthouses.

Now he has their response: No way.

As recently as last week, armed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in plainclothes arrested an undocumented immigrant at the Middlesex County courthouse, Sheriff Mildred Scott told WNYC. The man was free to go — except right then, immigration agents stepped in and detained him on an undisclosed charge.

That arrest came a week after Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner pleaded with Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to add courthouses to a list of “sensitive locations” that ICE avoids. Rabner wrote that “serious consequences” could result if immigrants fear that coming to court could lead to deportation. Rabner argued that witnesses, victims, and defendants may not show up to testify — making everyone less safe.

Before Trump gave ICE more discretion to arrest undocumented immigrants, attorneys say, federal agents never slipped into court to make arrests.

Rabner, the chief justice, declined to comment about federal officials ignoring his request to cease these courthouse operations.

Read the full story here 


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