In Your Opinion: Don’t Let Compressor Station 206 And NESE Pipeline Increase Our Ozone

Submitted by the Franklin Township Task Force on CS206 & NESE.

We’ve worked for years to stop the NESE Project, and now we are in the home stretch.  We are calling on Governor Murphy and the NJDEP to deny the water permit applications so that Compressor Station 206 and pipeline near and under Raritan Bay is not constructed.

With the actions listed at the end, we are speaking up to protect the health, safety and well-being of us, future generations, and the environment we love in this area of NJ from the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project that includes the proposed Compressor Station 206.

Now, with the final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) published by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), it’s predictable that Williams/Transco will be given FERC’s Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity anytime between the end of February and late April 2019.

In honor of Black History month and our fight to stop NESE, think about what the basketball player, Michael Jordan said:  “Obstacles don’t have to stop you.  If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up.  Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

The NESE Project can only be stopped if NY or NJ denies required water permits.  There are still major concerns with NESE, and we’ll provide action ideas and supporting information in this publication over the coming weeks about various topics.

The issue in today’s letter addresses the impacts of greenhouse gases from the NESE Project.

• We know that burning of natural gas adds to more frequent and more intense weather events like floods, hurricanes, heavy rains and heatwaves and these, in turn, impact our health and security while increasing the likelihood of infectious diseases and stress.
• We also know that compressor stations and gas pipelines leak methane – the most potent short-term greenhouse gas.
• Attached is information about the impacts of greenhouse gases from the NESE Project.

Many of us remember that Superstorm Sandy destroyed or damaged over 30,000 properties, cost over $36 billion, and resulted in 37 deaths in NJ alone.  Six years after Superstorm Sandy, over 1,000 NJ families were still not back in their homes.  Inland flooding from Hurricanes Floyd and Irene showed that it’s not just shore towns that are threatened by hurricanes.

Future letters to the editor will include information about other concerns with NESE:

• Air Quality & Health Impacts
• Safety Risk – Fires or Explosions
• Risks to Water Supply and Groundwater
• Risks from Construction in Raritan Bay
• NESE is not in the Public Interest
• questionable need for this added gas
• NESE thwarts NJ & NY clean energy goals

WHAT CAN PEOPLE DO TO GET THE ATTENTION OF GOVERNOR MURPHY AND THE NJDEP?

1.     Attached is a letter to download/print, sign and mail to Governor Murphy and the NJDEP Commissioner.  Share it with your family, friends and neighbors to ask them to do the same.

2.     Look for online petitions to the Governor and NJDEP with a message to them asking for denial of the permits.  One can be found at:  https://secure.foodandwaterwatch.org/act/deny-nese-permits

3.     You & your friends can also call the Governor at 609-292-6000 often and let him know that you are counting on the NJDEP to scrutinize the applications and hold Williams-Transco to the high environmental requirements of NJ with the expectation that the permits will be denied.  Tell him why you care.  Remind him of what he said in August 2018:  “Being responsible stewards of the environment is not a campaign promise, it’s a moral, philosophical, and economic obligation that we have to ensure a strong economy and quality of life for all New Jersey residents today and for generations to come.”

4.     Contact the Franklin Township Task Force on CS206 & NESE if you need copies of the letter, have ideas, or want to get involved – stopFTcompressor@yahoo.com.  You can also find updated information on our website, www.scrap-NESE.org & on the NY coalition’s website, www.stopthewilliamspipeline.org.

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