Environment

The area delineated in yellow would be open to hunting under a proposal endorsed by the Open Space Committee. Hunters may have another 124 acres of land to prowl in the upcoming hunting season. The township Open Space Advisory Committee on June 15 voted to recommend the Township Council including a 124-acre tract known a the “Route 518 Tract” to …

The Negri Nepote Grassland Preserve is one of two for which the township Open Space Committee is applying for prescribed burns. The fight against invasive species in the township’s grassland preserves continues, with the Open Space Advisory Committee voting June 15 to apply for more prescribed burns in two grassland areas. The Committee decided to apply to the New Jersey …

Trails Advisory Committee member Chuck Martin made a series of proposals for new trails at the Committee’s June 9 meeting. A plan to add another series of trails covering township and Somerset County property to the township’s Pathways and Trails Plan was approved by the Trails Advisory Committee at its June 9 meeting. The Committee also agreed to create a …

The Environmental Commission suggests the Township Council use part of a grant to buy reusable bags for free distribution to residents. The township is receiving a more than $130,000 grant, and the Environmental Commission members know how they’d like the Township Council to spend some of it. The state Clean Communities Council awarded Franklin a $131,996.61 Clean Communities Grant, money …

Protestors gather outside the Senior/Community Center in 2018. (File photo.) Williams-Transco on May 20 won federal approval of its request for a two-year extension to bring to fruition the company’s planned Northeast Services Enhancement Project, which includes a gas compressor station in Franklin. Transco on March 19 applied to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for a two-year extension on FERC’s …

A township Environmental Commissioner wants stricter enforcement of the state’s anti-idling laws at township warehouses. Commissioner Arnold Schmidt will write a recommendation to the Township Council, with the backing of his fellow Commissioners, asking that developers and owners of warehouses be required to install “No Idling” signs wherever trucks are located on the properties. A state law that’s been on …

Opponents of the Transco gas compressor station rally at the municipal complex in 2016. (File photo). Less than a year after its opponents were celebrating its demise, the controversial Williams-Transco Northeast Services Enhancement Project to increase its natural gas pipeline infrastructure has reared its head. Transco on March 19 applied to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for a two-year extension …

Seven more recycling zones in the township have been added to Somerset County’s dual stream recycling program. The zones stretch from Amwell Road to Easton Avenue, and are bordered by DeMott Lane and John F. Kennedy Boulevard. Residents in those zones will be given two 65-gallon wheeled recycling totes; one is for cardboard and paper products, and one is for …

Members of the Environmental Commission said their concerns are not being heard by township officials. What started as a discussion about how the Environmental Commission could operate more efficiently soon evolved into an airing of Commission members’ grievances against the Township Council and Township Manager. Vornlocker declined to comment for this story. Commission members at their March 1 virtual meeting …

Claremont Road School’s electricity will soon be supplied via solar energy, thanks to a decision made February 25 by the Board of Education. The Board voted to approve an $813,501 contract for the solar installation to EZNERGY NJ of Brick. The solar panels will be installed on the school’s roof. Board member Ed Potosnak said the purchase will pay for …