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GARDEN STATE ENVIRONEWS 030514

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May 14, 2003, 12:28:06 AM5/14/03

030514

GARDEN STATE ENVIRONEWS

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
{*} HIGHER TEMPERATURES AFFECT REGION'S ECOLOGY
{*} EPA FINALIZES AIR POLLUTION RULES
{*} OZONE SEASON BEGINS IN NJ
{*} NEW START DATE FOR NEW EMISSIONS SYSTEM TEST
{*} SENATE COMMITTEE PASSES MUNICIPAL CONGESTION BUSTING BILL
{*} STATES, PAINT INDUSTRY AGREE ON LEAD WARNINGS
{*} CAMDEM FREEHOLDERS OPPOSE GEMS LANDFILL DISCHARGE PLAN
{*} NJ TRANSIT HAS TOXIC SOIL PILED IN FLORENCE TWP
{*} AUDUBON CONCERNS MAY DELAY NJ WIND FARM
{*} DELAWARE 'WILD AND SCENIC' DESIGNATION FOUGHT
{*} EX-TRASH HEAP TO BE BIG URBAN PARK
{*} SHORE BUILDING DRAWS $50,000 FINE
{*} MONROE TIRE CLEANUP STOPPED IN ITS TRACKS
{*} OCEAN COUNTY WASTE DISPOSAL PROGRAM BEGINS

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The Garden State EnviroNet (GSE) gratefully acknowledges volunteers
Gerald Cullins, Bambi Dingman, Jeff Hook and Paul Neuman for their
contributions to today's issue. If interested in helping out, please
send an email message to mai...@gsenet.org.

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HIGHER TEMPERATURES AFFECT REGION'S ECOLOGY

Date: 030513
From: http://www.nynews.com/

By Roger Witherspoon, Journal News, May 12,2003

Federal researchers have documented a significant, long-term rise in
minimum winter temperatures from New York City to Putnam County, which
is altering the ecology of the land and waterways.

Researchers say the 10-degree increase may have contributed to a wide
array of ecosystem changes as different species of plants, animals and
microbes find the region more, or less, hospitable.

In the past few years, experts have noted such disparate events as
the widespread loss of lobster, flounder and oysters in Long Island
Sound, along with an increase in blue crab; a decrease in shad and
herring in the Hudson River, and a rise in invasive Asian clams; and
the demise of hemlock, dogwood, tulip and other trees. They also have
noticed an increase in birds that normally winter farther South, such
as sharp-shinned hawks and gray catbirds, and a rise in some species
of insects and parasites.

"These changes are just the beginning, clearly," said Andy Mele,
director of the environmental group Clearwater. "And we don't know
what is coming next. We are already seeing erratic weather patterns.
We are seeing changes at the ecosystem scale that will require massive
amounts of money and effort to cure, and it will take more than a
couple of nonprofit groups to make a difference."

The environmental changes were observed during the development of a
new "hardiness zone map" by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the
American Horticulture Society. The maps record the lowest average
winter temperatures throughout North America and separate hardiness
zones by increments of 10 degrees. The two organizations have
monitored temperatures throughout the nation from more than 7,000
weather stations since 1956.

The hardiness maps were first developed that year by Marc Cathey,
former director of the National Arboretum in Washington, D.C., and the
USDA's Agriculture Research Center in Maryland. "We don't believe this
results from global warming," Cathey said. "We believe the changes
come from increases in population, expansion of cities and parking
lots, and other sorts of development that all generate heat."

In addition, he said, temperatures have risen and fallen during the
past century, "and we had a warmer period about 40 years ago."

In an effort to combat technology's effect on the environment, Gov.
George Pataki last week wrote to the governors of 10 Northeast states,
from Maryland to Maine, asking them to help craft a regional strategy
for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. The 10
states, along with New York, represent the three major electricity
systems in the Northeast. Pataki told the governors that New York
plans to adopt the carbon dioxide emissions standards for motor
vehicles recently ordered by California and that a state task force
has been directed to recommend how New York can address the climate
change issue.

'A TREMENDOUS DIFFERENCE'

The latest hardiness zone map, the product of 15 years of temperature
monitoring, shows that the region from New York City to mid-Putnam
County - including Westchester and Rockland - has changed from Zone 6,
which has a minimum of 0 degrees Fahrenheit, to Zone 7, with a 10
degree minimum.

"A 10 degree difference in temperature can make a tremendous
difference in a plant being able to survive," said USDA researcher
Ramone Jardin. "It may not be that critical in the higher zones - it
is really hot between zones 11 and 10 - but it may make a big
difference between zones 5 and 6. If a zone has changed and gotten
warmer, you can add new plants that would not have been hardy at the
colder zone."

He added, however, that "if the temperature has changed and it has
gotten more hospitable to plants, then it would also be more
hospitable to other things, such as pests."

The significance of the winter temperature change is the
survivability of plants and seeds, and the effect cold temperatures
have on seed germination. Jardin said some fruit trees, such as peach,
pear and plum, require a minimum number of days at certain cold
temperatures for the buds to set properly the following year.

"Now one of the biggest areas being threatened is Georgia," he said.
"It is one of the biggest peach areas and it is already hitting its
minimum number of required cold days for the buds to set. A decrease
in the number of cold days there would hurt their crop. But a zone
change is not going to hurt peach growers in New Jersey."

The effect of the temperature change here has even been noticed by
area beekeepers. Tom Rippolon, a Putnam Valley beekeeper, said a
signature honey from the region came from the flower of the Poplar's
tulip tree, "which grows like a weed throughout this area. The trees
are still there, but for the last few years they haven't flowered and
the honey hasn't shown up. It's a uniquely very dark, red honey and
nothing creates that color except that tree. But it stopped."

There also has been a rise in Asian bee parasites, which the USDA
reports have devastated hives across the country. "There are no wild
bees left in the county for all practical purposes," said Yonkers
beekeeper Norman Bantz.

The New York Botanical Gardens has launched a study on the effect of
temperature changes on the region's trees, said Chuck Peters, an
ecologist with the gardens. "We are looking at seasonally different
events, such as when did they leaf out and when did they drop their
seeds, and is the change due to the impact of warming. More
importantly, we are trying to learn if the change confers a selective
advantage to one species over another species, and are non-native
species more adept at these changes than our native species?"

Prominent local trees, such as the tree of heaven or devil's walking
stick, are beginning to flower earlier than they used to, Peters said.

"What is distressing," he said, "is that all the native species are
showing signs of attack by pathogens, while the non-natives seem happy
as clams. The hemlock tree is such an important component of the
forests around here, and it has given a certain character to the
forests. But the wooly adelgid is a bug that wipes out the hemlock,
and around New York you'd be hard-pressed to find the hemlock now.
Over the last 10 years or so, the hemlocks have just disappeared. It's
very, very sad, and it's scary."

Peters said the region's dogwood trees also are being killed off by a
fungi called dogwood anthracnose because "their growth and vigor has
been impacted by the changing environmental conditions in the New York
City area."

CHANGES ALONG THE HUDSON AND SOUND

In Long Island Sound, the warmer temperature is considered a major
contributor to the demise of the lobster industry, said Mark Tedesco,
director of the Long Island Sound office of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency.

"We don't know what kind of changes there will be from the warmer
weather," he said. "We know it will affect any number of organisms in
the Sound."

Before the zone change, lobsters already were at the southern extent
of their range and were susceptible to parasites in the warmer
conditions, Tedesco said. The warmer water also drove the flounder out
of the Sound and made oysters susceptible to disease.

"The oyster industry had been thriving," Tedesco said. "In '92, the
oyster harvest was worth $50 million. In 2001, it was down to only $5
million. But if you change conditions so they are less hospitable for
one species, it may be more hospitable for another. There is evidence
blue crabs are moving in. There is not enough data yet to support the
idea they could replace lobsters as a crop, but it could happen."

Along the Hudson River, the change in weather also has produced gains
and losses. Clearwater's Mele said the net result "is an environment
that is less favorable to fish, more favorable to algae and bacteria.
Herring are practically nonexistent in the river and the shad is at
its lowest level in recorded history."

On a positive note, Christopher Letts of the Hudson River Foundation
recalled that otter were virtually eradicated from the lower Hudson in
the 1930s. Now, he said, "I rarely walk on a Westchester beach where I
don't see the tracks of a sea otter."

* * *

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EPA FINALIZES AIR POLLUTION RULES

Date: 030512
From: http://ens-news.com/

Environment News Service, May 12, 2003

Washington, DC - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has
revised two rules contributing to its efforts to reduce national
emissions of toxic air pollutants. The rules affect industries such as
auto and metal can coating, fabric printing and dyeing, iron and steel
manufacture, and industrial boilers.

The first action issued Thursday amends a rule known as the "General
Provisions" which establishes a common set of requirements for
developing rules or standards to regulate emissions of toxic air
pollution.

In the second action, EPA is amending its rule known as the "Section
112(j) or MACT Hammer rule." MACT stands for maximum achievable
control technology to reduce the emission of air pollutants. This rule
currently affects over 40 categories of industry for which EPA has yet
to issue national air toxics emissions standards.

The 1990 Clean Air Act charged EPA with the task of issuing
regulations that would reduce air toxic emissions from over 170
categories of industries.

To date, the agency has issued rules to control emissions of air
toxics from 112 of the 154 categories of industries currently listed
for control.

Sixteen of the original categories have been delisted or are included
within other categories. The EPA is committed to completing the
remaining emissions standards by the deadlines agreed to in a March
2003 settlement agreement with the Sierra Club. The agency says that
all will be completed by June 14, 2005.

The final amendments require an affected source of emissions to
submit a copy of its startup, shutdown, and malfunction plan (SSMP) to
its state, tribal or local environmental enforcement agency, if
requested by its agency, and to revise its plan if that agency finds
it to be deficient.

An SSMP is a required document that describes how a source will
operate to minimize emissions during periods of startup, shutdown, and
malfunction. The amendments also eliminate summary reporting of
startups and shutdowns if the SSMP is followed during those periods.

The amendments clarify that during periods of startup, shutdown, and
malfunction, the emissions standard need not be attained, but the
facility must reduce emissions to the greatest extent consistent with
safety and good air pollution control practices.

These amendments include a backstop to insure that emissions
reductions will occur by requiring states to set emission limits on a
facility-by-facility basis should the EPA not be able to finalize the
remaining air toxics standards as agreed.

* * *

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OZONE SEASON BEGINS IN NJ

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "depnews depnews" {depnews...@dep.state.nj.us}

STRICTER EMISSION REQUIREMENTS SET FOR NJ FACILITIES TO REDUCE SMOG

May 13, 2003

Trenton - To protect against and decrease health-threatening ozone
levels in New Jersey, the state Department of Environmental Protection
(DEP) today announced stricter air emission regulations that will
further reduce smog-causing nitrogen oxides (NOx) under a new phase of
a regional emissions cap and trade program, and lessen volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from gas stations, auto refinishing
operations and manufacturers using cleaning solvents.

"These stricter standards are part of a regional effort to protect
public health by reducing the pollution that causes smog and impacts
the health of New Jersey's citizens," said DEP Commissioner Bradley M.
Campbell. "Air pollution is not confined by state borders and our
cooperative work with neighboring and upwind states is essential to
protect our air quality."

New Jersey is participating in the Ozone Transport Commission's (OTC)
multi-state cap and trade initiative called the NOx Budget Program,
which sets a regional budget or cap on NOx emissions from power plants
and other large combustion sources during the "ozone season." The
regulated ozone season is May through September. The first phase of
the NOx control program was initiated in 1995, the second phase was
initiated in 1999 and the current, third phase began May 1, 2003.

The targeted goal of the newly launched Phase III of the NOx Budget
Program is to reduce ozone-causing emissions throughout the northeast
corridor (from Washington, D.C. to southern New Hampshire) by
approximately 70 percent from the 1990 regional levels. In 2002, OTC
states collectively reduced ozone by 280,000 tons - approximately 60
percent below the 1990 baseline levels. In 2002, New Jersey facilities
covered under the program emitted approximately 17,082 tons of NOx,
compared with 47,000 tons in 1990. Under the stricter, third phase of
OTC rules, New Jersey's 2003 NOx emissions cap is 8,200 tons.

"The OTC budget program provides facilities a cost-effective option
to trade emissions and achieve much greater pollution reductions than
could be achieved through conventional approaches," added Commissioner
Campbell, who also serves as the newly elected Vice Chairman of the
OTC.

In addition to using add-on pollution controls to meet the emissions
budget, facilities can participate in a viable NOx trading market. The
OTC program requires that each state allocate specific emission
allowances to facilities in accordance with their portion of the
regional budget. Unused allowances can be sold or saved for use in
subsequent ozone seasons. The NOx Budget Program applies to more than
1,000 large combustion facilities (budget sources) in OTC states,
including more than 900 electric generating units and over 100
industrial units, such as steam boilers and process heaters. There are
currently 184 New Jersey NOx emission sources participating in the OTC
program. All NOx sources are closely monitored under the OTC program
and each individual facility can not violate other regulated air
emission limits.

While the OTC budget and trading program has successfully reduced
emissions, NOx emissions as a whole continue to be a problem from
increased motor vehicle use and the ongoing transport of pollutants
into the region from states upwind of OTC states. Further emission
reduction efforts both within and upwind of the OTC region - including
the launch of Phase III of the NOx Budget Program - are necessary to
achieve the ozone standard.

The OTC's Phase III reductions have been merged into a broader
regional cap and trade program under the federal Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) "NOx State Implementation Plan (SIP) Call,"
which impacts 21 eastern states and the District of Columbia
(including all OTC states except New Hampshire).

Unlike the EPA's Clear Skies cap and trade program, the OTC NOx
budget caps are phased in through an aggressive timeline, requiring
power plants to use more effective pollution control technologies and
actively driving significant emission reductions throughout the
region. The Clear Skies emission caps are too loose and are phased in
too slowly to help states attain federal standards for fine
particulates and ozone by required dates. Under the Clear Skies
program alone, new power plants built in New Jersey would actually be
required to meet less strict emission requirements than those already
required and in effect. Also, in contrast to the Open Market Emission
Trading (OMET) program that the DEP abandoned at the start of the
McGreevey Administration, the OTC trading program includes safeguards
to ensure that pollution goals are met.

In addition to participating in OTC's NOx budget program, the DEP has
adopted two OTC model rules to reduce volatile organic compound (VOC)
emissions from auto refinishing operations and manufacturers that use
vapor cleaning machines on their products. Approximately 3,500
automobile repair and maintenance facilities, industrial maintenance
shops and the electronics industry will be regulated under the law's
"solvent cleaning operations" provision. A second adopted provision -
"mobile equipment repair and refinishing" - will require less
polluting paint spray guns at 1,600 facilities that apply VOC-
releasing materials to cars and other mobile equipment for profit,
such as automobile repair and maintenance facilities.

The DEP also is adopting new rules that affect the dispensing of
gasoline. Under the "enhanced vapor recovery" provision, new VOC rules
will require operators of approximately 3,800 gas dispensing
facilities including gas stations and car rental agencies to install
emission controls for all new equipment and conduct yearly compliance
testing. The new VOC regulations become effective this summer.

OTC consists of representatives from the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic
states, including Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine,
Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia.

Ground-level ozone (or smog) is formed when nitrogen oxides and
volatile organic compound (VOC) gases react with sunlight,
particularly in the warm summer months. The regulated ozone season
begins in May and closes at the end of September. Ozone impacts the
respiratory system, aggravating asthma, increasing susceptibility to
respiratory illnesses like pneumonia and bronchitis, and contributing
to permanent lung damage. It can also damage forests, reduce the
productivity of agricultural crops, and lead to the decay of buildings
and monuments.

In 2002, New Jersey exceeded the new eight-hour health standard for
safe levels of ozone on 44 days, and exceeded the existing one-hour
ozone standard on 16 days.

* * *

Contact: Amy Cradic (609) 984-1795

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

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NEW START DATE FOR NEW EMISSIONS SYSTEM TEST

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "depnews depnews" {depnews...@dep.state.nj.us}

ADMINISTRATION REVISES START DATE FOR NEW EMISSIONS SYSTEM TEST

May 13, 2003

Trenton - The McGreevey Administration announced today that it was
revising the start date for a new test that is part of the state's
vehicle inspection program, beginning the test on August 4, 2003
instead of June 2. The new procedure allows inspectors to read a
vehicle's on board diagnostic (OBD) computer to determine if there
have been any malfunctions in the emissions-related systems.

"The additional time will help us minimize any glitches in the
testing system that might inconvenience motorists," said Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell. "Our
fundamental goal is to make inspections as user-friendly as possible
while safeguarding the quality of New Jersey's air for the health of
our communities."

When New Jersey last updated its emissions testing program in
December of 1999, requiring the use of dynamometers for testing
tailpipe emissions, the program changes were implemented prior to the
system being fully tested, resulting in frequent equipment failures
and inordinately long lines at inspection stations.

"We want to avoid rushing a new test into our inspection program
before we have determined that the system is working properly,"
Campbell added. He noted that the later start date will also allow
more privately owned inspection facilities to complete the
installation of the OBD testing systems in time for the roll out of
the testing requirement.

"More time is needed to scrutinize and test this new and important
technology," said Diane Legreide, director of the Division of Motor
Vehicles. " By revising the implementation date and catching problems
before they arise, we can provide a level of service to residents they
expect and deserve."

A vehicle's OBD computer, which is federally mandated to be installed
on all vehicles manufactured in 1996 or later, monitors all emissions-
related systems and stores a code whenever a malfunction is detected.
Motorists are made aware of any problems by the "Check Engine"
indicator light on their dashboards.

Since some emission system malfunctions do not adversely affect a
vehicle's performance, they can go undetected by the driver for some
time. The OBD test can detect problems as small as a pinhole-sized
leak, alerting motorists of problems before they potentially become
more costly to repair or create an excess of harmful emissions.

The use of an OBD test will replace the traditional tailpipe
emissions test in inspections for most cars manufactured in 1996 or
later.

Since February 2003, New Jersey has conducted trial runs of the new
testing system at centralized inspection stations. Almost all
centralized inspection stations around the state now are equipped to
conduct OBD tests.

New Jersey's 1,400 Private Inspection Facilities (PIFs) are also in
the process of upgrading to the new OBD test. Although the start date
for OBD testing has changed, PIFs have until the original deadline of
May 15 to apply for state funding to offset the costs of upgrading
their systems. The state is providing $1 million to PIFs committed to
the OBD testing program to help defray the costs of needed software
upgrades.

With the new OBD test, New Jersey's motorists retain the option of
having their vehicle inspected at either a centralized inspection
facility or a PIF.

* * *

Contact: Elaine Makatura, (609) 292-2994 or
Peter Boger, (609) 984-1795

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

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SENATE COMMITTEE PASSES MUNICIPAL CONGESTION BUSTING BILL

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Tri-State Transportation Campaign" {ts...@tstc.org}

MOBILIZING THE REGION # 415

Last Thursday, the NJ State Senate Community and Urban Affairs
Committee voted in favor of a bill (S.2093) that would help
municipalities reduce traffic congestion. The measure, sponsored by
Senator Shirley Turner (D-Mercer) and Senator Leonard Lance (R-
Hunterdon), would re-grant local planning boards in New Jersey the
power to consider off-site traffic impacts of development, a right
they lost with passage of the Municipal Land Use Laws in 1975.

Today, New Jersey municipalities are allowed only to consider traffic
circulation issues at an immediate building site when ruling on a
development proposal. Thus, many consequences of development go
unanalyzed, and become apparent only later. Co-sponsors of the bill
are Senators Leonard T. Connors (R-Ocean), Barbara Buono (D-
Middlesex), Sharpe James (D-Newark), and John H. Adler (D-Cherry
Hill).

If they become law, the bill's provisions would provide a boost for
Governor James McGreevey's anti-sprawl campaign. A letter from
McGreevey's commissioners of transportation, community affairs and
environmental protection in support of the bill was delivered to
Senate committee members last week.

By allowing municipalities to consider broad traffic impacts, the
bill could help reduce congestion, and the "dumb growth" that fuels
it. According to recent data from the North Jersey Transportation
Planning Authority, New Jersey residents spend a total of 1.6 million
hours delayed in traffic jams every day.

The bill's provisions are voluntary for municipalities. If a city or
town wants to exercise power to control off-site traffic impacts, it
must adopt a circulation element in its master plan addressing
objective measures of traffic performance, such as safety, congestion,
and alternatives modes of transportation. If an applicant fails to
conform to the objectives outlined in the master plan circulation
element, then the municipality can negotiate improvements (paid for by
the developer) or, in case the developer is unwilling or the
improvements would not fit the overall master plan, deny the
application.

* * *

Tri-State Transportation Campaign
240 W 35th St #801
New York NY 10001
Tel: 212-268-7474
Fax: 212-268-7333
Email: ts...@tstc.org
Web: http://www.tstc.org

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STATES, PAINT INDUSTRY AGREE ON LEAD WARNINGS

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Peter Montague" {Pe...@rachel.org}

By Marc Kaufman, Washington Post Staff Writer, May 13, 2003

The American paint industry and most of the nation's state attorneys
general announced an agreement yesterday aimed at reducing the
frequency of lead poisoning caused by old paint, a problem that still
threatens thousands of children yearly even though lead paint was
banned 25 years ago.

The agreement will require uniform stickers or labels on new paint
cans warning consumers about the dangers of stirring up lead paint
dust during home renovations, fund a national training program on how
to safely eliminate lead paint in old homes, and provide discounts on
the cost of some equipment needed to remove old paint.

The initiative, which the National Paint and Coatings Association
estimates will cost more than $250 million over four years, is
designed to teach consumers more about the dangers of lead paint and
safe methods for removing it.

"Meaningful warning labels and education will substantially reduce
the number of lead poisoning cases reported and provide real
protection to families and consumers from the risks associated with
home renovation projects," said Massachusetts Attorney General Tom
Reilly, who led the negotiations with the paint industry.

"While this agreement will not put an end to childhood lead
poisoning, it will raise awareness about the problems associated with
renovation work and the precautions that should be taken to prevent
injury," he said.

However, Rhode Island, which has sued the paint industry as a "public
nuisance" for creating conditions that can lead to lead poisoning, did
not sign the agreement. A trial on the issue ended in a hung jury last
year, and lawyers from both sides have met recently about scheduling a
second trial. Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch called
yesterday's agreement "an empty gesture."

"I don't think it's worth the paper is written on," he said. "It
tries to shift responsibility to the consumers, and doesn't do justice
to the kids in Rhode Island harmed by lead and the state's
homeowners."

Several cities and counties have sued the paint industry on grounds
similar to the Rhode Island case.

Lead paint has not been manufactured or sold in the United States
since 1978, but it still presents a serious risk to people exposed to
peeling lead chips or dust kicked up during renovations. It is
especially dangerous to children, who can suffer permanent
neurological damage. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention estimates that at any one time more than 400,000 children
between the ages of 1 and 5 have elevated lead levels in their blood.

According to Reilly and Andrew Miller, an adviser on public policy
for the paint association, the agreement is unusual because it was
negotiated without a threat of legal action. Reilly and other state
attorneys general approached the industry group in October asking for
more toughly worded, uniform warning labels on paint cans and an
industry-funded training program for lead-paint removal.

"This is a real high-water mark for a agreement between states and an
industry," Miller said. "We have 46 states and five other
jurisdictions signed on to an agreement that didn't involve any threat
of litigation. Both sides wanted to do this, and so it got done."

Reilly called the agreement a government-industry "model" that can be
used to address other public issues without the delays of litigation
and regulation.

The agreement does not address the question of liability for damage
from lead paint, and states that signed do not waive any legal rights
regarding possible future lawsuits.

The agreement, which goes into effect in September, initially
requires paint companies to add prominent stickers warning that lead
dust exposure can occur during home renovations. By the end of 2004, a
uniform and permanent warning has to be on all paint cans larger than
16 ounces.

The industry-financed lead-paint removal training program will be
open to renovation contractors, government workers, home inspection
companies and do-it-yourself homeowners. The industry promised to
offer the training at 50 locations and expects it to reach 15,000 to
30,000 people over four years.

Tom Graves, the association's general counsel, said the association
will work to establish a program to sell and lease at a discount
special vacuum cleaners and masks used to remove lead paint.

* * *

# # #

Rachel's Environment & Health News
Environmental Research Foundation
POB 160
New Brunswick NJ 08903-0160
Tel: 732-828-9995
Fax: 732-791-4603
Email: e...@rachel.org
Web: http://www.rachel.org

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

CAMDEM FREEHOLDERS OPPOSE GEMS LANDFILL DISCHARGE PLAN

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Peter Montague" {Pe...@rachel.org}

JUDGE TO DECIDE IF LANDFILL CAN DISCHARGE WATER
INTO CAMDEN COUNTY SEWERS

By Lawrence Hajna, Courier-Post Staff, May 13, 2003

Gloucester Twp. - Just days before a critical federal court hearing,
the Camden County freeholders released a statement opposing the plan
to discharge groundwater from GEMS Landfill into county sewer mains.

In the statement released Monday, Freeholder Louis Capelli Jr.
contends there is no legal mandate for the Camden County Municipal
Utilities Authority to accept the wastewater. He is the freeholder
board's liaison to the CCMUA.

But Sharon Finlayson, a key opponent of the discharge plan, argues
the statement is hedged just enough to make it appear as though the
county is taking a tough stand on the politically charged issue
without actually "just saying no" to the discharge.

The carefully worded statement says the board agrees with the CCMUA's
position that "in absence of a clear legal mandate, the CCMUA should
refuse to accept the effluent from the GEMS landfill; it is the right
thing to do to protect the health, safety and welfare of its citizens
and to protect the environment."

Finlayson, chairwoman of the New Jersey Environmental Federation,
argues the statement leaves ample room for a federal judge to order
the CCMUA to take the water.

"They're giving themselves wiggle room. I think they're looking at
the monetary aspects of the discharge above all else, but want to be
able to come back to the public and say, 'We were forced to take this
wastewater,' " said Finlayson, who wants all treatment to take place
at the federal Superfund site.

The discharge plan has fueled storms of protests from the public,
elected officials and environmentalists, who fear health problems from
radiological contaminants in wastewater flowing through the county's
mains.

The mains travel through Gloucester Township, Runnemede, Bellmawr and
Gloucester City en route to the CCMUA treatment plant in South Camden.
In addition to conventional landfill contaminants, the water contains
low levels of uranium and radium, which officials say probably result
from naturally occurring minerals beneath the now-closed municipal
dump.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency, overseeing the cleanup,
says a pretreatment plant at the site is capable of removing nearly
all of the radiological contamination.

Last month, the CCMUA filed papers in U.S. District Court in Camden
saying it was not prepared to accept the water, but stopped short of
banning the discharge.

Instead, the CCMUA said it was waiting for state Department of
Environmental Protection guidance or an order from the judge. The
authority says it will only accept the water if it meets drinking
water standards for radionuclides.

A trust of former users of the landfill has already paid the CCMUA
$1.7 million in connection fees. The authority will also receive about
$200,000 per year to accept the wastewater.

U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle is scheduled to hear arguments
Thursday that will determine if the discharge takes place.

The GEMS Phase II Trust, representing former users paying for
groundwater cleanup, wants Simandle to compel the CCMUA to accept the
water under the terms of a 1997 consent decree.

The trust asked Simandle to lift a CCMUA "cease discharge" order in
effect since 1999, when the radionuclides were discovered in the
groundwater at the landfill.

The CCMUA had planned to treat the water for more conventional
contaminants, such as solids and chemicals, but does not have
equipment to treat for radiological contaminants.

Last year, Simandle ruled the freeholders have no legal standing to
intervene in the case, but the county maintains it remains steadfastly
opposed to the plan.

"Given our review of the situation, the public outcry and concern for
the environment, the freeholders have always expressed their concern
about the effects accepting this effluent could have on the
environment and CCMUA's system," the statement said.

* * *

# # #

Rachel's Environment & Health News
Environmental Research Foundation
POB 160
New Brunswick NJ 08903-0160
Tel: 732-828-9995
Fax: 732-791-4603
Email: e...@rachel.org
Web: http://www.rachel.org

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

NJ TRANSIT HAS TOXIC SOIL PILED IN FLORENCE TWP

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Peter Montague" {Pe...@rachel.org}

By Richard Pearsall, Courier-Post Staff, May 13, 2003

Florence - Dirt piled along the light rail line here contains the
same low level of contaminants as the dirt amassed in East Camden, NJ
Transit acknowledged Monday.

"It's the same dirt," NJ Transit spokeswoman Penny Bassett Hackett
said, referring to excavated material that contains small amounts of
benzene, PCBs, cadmium, lead and other toxic materials.

Residents and officials in both communities have been caught off
guard by the dirt's contents. But the dirt, left over from work on the
34-mile, Camden-to-Trenton line, poses no threat to neighbors in
either East Camden or Florence because it has been capped by clean
fill, NJ Transit said Monday in a prepared statement.

Bassett Hackett said the cap consists of "18 inches of clean fill and
two inches of topsoil."

The berms were created to provide both communities with sound
barriers, the NJ Transit statement said.

The mounds in East Camden - as high as 30 feet in places - are
mountainous compared with the berms erected in the Roebling section
here, which are eight to 10 feet high.

But the berms in Roebling are, if anything, closer and more
accessible to residential areas.

Neighbors and officials in Florence reacted with the same mixture of
concern and anger as their counterparts in Camden. "I don't understand
that at all," said Donna McElrea, the owner of Donna's Deli and the
head of the Roebling Historical Society. "We've already got a
Superfund site (the former Roebling Steel Mill). We've had it up to
here."

Florence officials said they were assured by NJ Transit that the soil
was "clean," but asked to see test results for assurance.

That was 30 days ago, Township Administrator Richard Brook said, and
the township is still waiting.

The officials said NJ Transit never previously disclosed the dirt
contained toxic materials.

Mayor Michael "Mickey" Muchowski said the township "saw them bringing
in the soil and were quite happy with the berm itself."

But he said there was some concern about safety and "because of our
past experiences with NJ Transit we were reserving judgment" until
officials saw the test results.

Muchowski described NJ Transit as difficult to deal with.

In March, residents near the berms in Roebling speculated about their
purpose, most saying they assumed it was to block the rail from view.

A small, partially wooded area where adults walk their dogs and
children play is all that separates the berms from a neighborhood of
rowhomes.

"Kids play up there every day," John Clarke, a retiree who lives in
the neighborhood, said last month, before information about the
contents of the berms was known.

Hundreds of footprints on the dirt pile appeared to confirm Clarke's
observation.

The East Camden Civic Association has scheduled a meeting for
Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Catto School, at 32nd and Saunders streets,
to discuss the berms in its neighborhood.

* * *

Reach Richard Pearsall at (856) 486-2465 or
rpea...@courierpostonline.com
Copyright 2003 Courier-Post.

# # #

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Environmental Research Foundation
POB 160
New Brunswick NJ 08903-0160
Tel: 732-828-9995
Fax: 732-791-4603
Email: e...@rachel.org
Web: http://www.rachel.org

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

AUDUBON CONCERNS MAY DELAY NJ WIND FARM

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Peter Montague" {Pe...@rachel.org}

BIRD-SAFETY FEARS MAY BLOW WIND FARM PLANS

By Thomas Barlas, Staff Writer, (609) 272-7201
Press of Atlantic City, May 13, 2003

Atlantic City - Concerns of the New Jersey Audubon Society about bird
safety could delay construction of the nation's first planned coastal
wind farm here for weeks or months, according to officials connected
with the project.

Delays will not help project developer Community Energy of Wayne,
Pa., which wants to finish the project by Dec. 31, when a much wanted
federal tax-credit program expires.

The Audubon Society raised its concerns in a letter to the state
Department of Environmental Protection as part of the permitting
process for the wind farm, slated to be built at the Atlantic County
Utilities Authority's sewage-treatment plant on Route 30 in Atlantic
City.

A copy of the letter was not available Monday, and Audubon Society
officials could not be reached for comment.

However, the Audubon Society apparently is worried that the wind
farm's impact on birds has not been thoroughly investigated, according
to Community Energy President Brent Alderfer, who disagrees.

"We think they have been," Alderfer said.

ACUA President Richard Dovey said the Audubon Society's stance could
delay the project for "weeks or months."

"How much, I don't exactly know," he said.

The concern is that delay could affect the project's ability to take
advantage of the tax-credit program.

That program is important, company officials say, because the cost of
producing electricity from wind is too expensive to make it
competitive with traditional power sources. The tax-credit program
would significantly help Community Energy, they said, and the ACUA,
which anticipates buying at least 60 percent of its energy needs from
the wind farm.

The power would be used to run the massive pumps and other devices at
the sewage-treatment plant.

Additionally, officials say, the tax credits would help offset the
wind farm's significant initial capital investment. Each of the
windmills, with their blades that stretch 325 feet into the air, cost
about $1.5 million.

Both Dovey and Alderfer believe it is likely that Congress will
extend the tax-credit program.

But Community Energy officials also say they want the project
finished by Dec. 31 just in case federal lawmakers do not extend the
program.

"That's about the size of it," Alderfer said.

Community Energy officials said earlier that "some tough decisions
have to be made" about the project if the tax credits are not
available.

Alderfer said he wants to meet with Audubon Society officials "and
see if we can address their concerns."

The state's coast plays host to a rich population of shorebirds,
raptors and waterfowl, in addition to a massive fall migration of
birds along the shoreline.

While modern windmills spin relatively slowly, only about 10 to 20
rotations per minute, the outer edge of the 220-foot-long blades can
move as fast as 150 mph.

Audubon Society officials said earlier one of their fears is that
birds will be killed when they fly into the moving blades.

There already have been two studies regarding how the wind farm here
could affect birds.

Other studies have shown that bird deaths relating to wind farms are
a "lot, lot, lot lower" than bird fatalities related to things like
tall buildings, traffic and house cats, according to Alderfer.

The proposed wind farm is one of three wind projects currently taking
shape in New Jersey.

Atlantic Renewable Energy Corp., of Richmond, Va., is studying the
feasibility of creating an offshore wind farm in the Atlantic Ocean or
Delaware Bay, with an eye toward erecting a 90-megawatt wind farm off
Barnegat Bay.

Clipper Windpower, of Goleta, Calif., is planning a 21-megawatt wind
farm atop Scotts Mountain in Harmony and White townships in Warren
County.

Dovey said those projects drew much more concern from environmental
groups during earlier meetings with the DEP.

* * *

To email Thomas Barlas at The Press: TBa...@pressofac.com

# # #

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Environmental Research Foundation
POB 160
New Brunswick NJ 08903-0160
Tel: 732-828-9995
Fax: 732-791-4603
Email: e...@rachel.org
Web: http://www.rachel.org

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

DELAWARE 'WILD AND SCENIC' DESIGNATION FOUGHT

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Peter Montague" {Pe...@rachel.org}

HARMONY TWP RESIDENTS OPPOSE LABELING THE DELAWARE 'WILD'

Delaware River neighbors fear it would lead to eventual
takeover of their land.

By Katherine Blok, Express-Times, May 13, 2003

Harmony Twp. - About three years after an act of Congress, a group of
residents in Harmony Township is fighting the designation of the
Delaware River under the National Park Service's Wild and Scenic River
program.

At a standing-room-only township committee meeting May 6, a
representative of the park service, Bill Sharpe, explained the wild
and scenic program and answered questions for about 90 minutes,
according to residents in attendance.

The township is divided among those who are in favor of the
designation, which was endorsed through a 1994 township committee
resolution, and those who want the township to rescind its support.
The dissenters are wary of the government exercising its power of
eminent domain and having too much control over access to and use of
the river, said Bill Rosebrock, chairman of the Warren County
Environmental Commission and a township resident.

One resident opposed to the wild and scenic program is Abby Crouse.
She said the plan encourages the direct acquisition of privately owned
land and government control of river activities.

"I think our largest concern is public access. The negatives of
public access are basically outside individuals who do not possess the
valuable knowledge of the river environment, and basically respecting
the river," Crouse said. "We are people who live on the river's edge
and we're the largest environmentalists for the river. We feel home
rule should take precedence over the federal government."

Other river systems with wild and scenic designations have later seen
the complete takeover of the river by the National Park Service,
Crouse said. Residents' main fears are losing their land and not being
able to do what they want on the river - activities like boating,
fishing and using personal watercraft.

A petition with more than 100 signatures has been presented to the
township in support of rescinding the 1994 resolution. Harmony was one
of 23 municipalities that supported the wild and scenic designation,
Crouse said. Just six municipalities did not support the program and
one, Pohatcong Township, never took a vote, Crouse said.

The fear of government takeover stems from an incident in the 1960s
at Tocks Island, a small island just north of the Delaware Water Gap,
Rosebrock said. The Army Corps of Engineers wanted to build a dam at
the island that would have created a lake reaching from the gap to the
New York state border, Rosebrock said. The government took over
condemned land on both sides of the river, leaving entire villages
empty, and never built the dam, Rosebrock said. The land was turned
over to the National Park Service and is now the Delaware Water Gap
National Recreation Area, he said.

"The people around here have very vivid memories of that. They're
very bitter that the government came in and forced them out. That's
the battle cry over this wild and scenic thing," Rosebrock said.

He admitted that there is some "questionable wording" in the park
service's literature on the program about who really controls the
land. The park service has said all land control is local, according
to Rosebrock.

A nonprofit group called the Delaware Greenway Partnership has
advisory control over the river, Rosebrock said.

Rosebrock said he spoke in favor of the wild and scenic designation
at Tuesday's meeting.

"It doesn't have a lot of teeth in it, but it's one more tool we can
use to limit development and try to control what happens on the
river," he said.

Also speaking in favor was Karen Buckley, chairwoman of the
township's environmental commission. She said she did not speak on
behalf of the entire commission. She considers the wild and scenic
program to be a positive thing for the township. Along with the
designation is a grant program for well testing and water resources,
she said.

"I understand the people along the river and their concerns. That's
why Bill Sharpe was invited to the meeting, so hopefully he can make
them understand. It's not a taking of their land," Buckley said,
adding that the government has the power of eminent domain with or
without the wild and scenic designation.

"What the wild and scenic program does is in preventing toxics (and)
nuclear plants. I see a benefit in that. And development prevention,"
Buckley said. "The National Park Service does not want to purchase
land in this area. The key was for local municipalities to keep their
control. This was just an added layer to help them along the way."

Township officials said they are taking a "wait and see" approach.

Mayor Lou Mattei said the meeting was held so the township committee
could listen to the residents. He said there is a clear 50-50 split.

"I haven't seen that petition yet. But in any case, we're going to
consider that (rescinding the 1994 resolution), as well as staying
with it," Mattei said. "I was encouraged from what I heard from the
presentation. It seems like a lot of the fears among many of the
residents may have been abated. The park service is going to send us a
letter confirming statements that were made and then we will sit down
and talk about it."

Committeeman Jack Burdge said he has mixed feelings about the wild
and scenic program.

"We do have a beautiful stretch of river. The Delaware is a very
clean river. It didn't get that way by having this wild and scenic in
place. It got that way by a lot of individual groups fighting to keep
it that way," Burdge said. The wild and scenic program "definitely has
its pros and cons. I think a lot more people would support it if
certain wording in the plan was changed."

* * *

# # #

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Environmental Research Foundation
POB 160
New Brunswick NJ 08903-0160
Tel: 732-828-9995
Fax: 732-791-4603
Email: e...@rachel.org
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::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

EX-TRASH HEAP TO BE BIG URBAN PARK

Date: 13 May 2003
From: "Kathy Urffer" {kat...@hackensackriverkeeper.org}

By Andrew Jacobs, NY Times, May 13, 2003

Carlstadt - The Hackensack Meadowlands, once among the nation's best
known trash heaps and a mosquito-infested symbol of environmental
degradation, is poised to become something that once would have seemed
unimaginable: a watery ecological preserve that would become the
region's largest urban park.

Three months after developers agreed to abandon plans for a shopping
center in the heart of the tidal basin that stretches for miles in
either direction here, an unlikely coalition of business executives,
environmental advocates and mayors has tentatively agreed to back a
plan that would turn 8,400 acres of swamp, sewage and orphaned
landfills into a sprawling green space 10 times the size of Central
Park.

The site is two miles from the mouth of the Lincoln Tunnel.

In the past week, state officials, fortified with $8.4 million in
acquisition funds, have begun contacting property owners to move
forward with the next phase, the purchase of 700 acres for the refuge,
which has unofficially been christened Meadowlands Preserve. The state
already owns 3,400 acres that it plans to devote to the park, and
officials say they have enough money to make the preserve a reality.

"A few years ago, if you had told anyone this collection of toxic
dumps and marshes would one day become an environmental park, people
would have thought you were crazy," said Representative Steve Rothman,
a New Jersey Democrat who helped secure more than $4 million from
Congress for the land purchases. Plans for the park, which have
percolated for a decade, gained momentum in February, when a Virginia-
based company abandoned its efforts to build a two-million-square-foot
retail and entertainment center on wetlands here. The company, which
spent years trying to win federal approval for the project, has agreed
to shift the mall to the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford
and donate the 600-acre site to the state.

Extending from the edges of suburban Ridgefield south to the
industrial flank of Kearny, the park will include playing fields,
fishing piers, golf links and 35 miles of hiking trails, some of which
will skirt above the riverine mud flats.

But just cobbling together patches of soupy earth does not make a
wildlife refuge. Large swaths of the Meadowlands have long been cut
off from the nourishing flow of the Atlantic, and environmental
researchers are still trying to figure out how to clean up a landscape
once dominated by scores of towering garbage dumps, many of which
still leach brightly colored goo into surrounding waters.

Remediating the most damaged areas could cost hundreds of millions of
dollars and take a decade or more to complete. Ecologists are unsure
how the contamination from heavy metals will play out in the aquatic
food chain, which includes more than 260 species of birds that feed,
breed and nest in the area. "We're going to have to make the best of
what in actuality is a very bad situation," said Bill Sheehan,
director of Hackensack Riverkeeper, a group that serves as the
Meadowlands's most dogged defender.

Still, as he steered a pontoon boat through the serpentine Saw Mill
Creek last week, Mr. Sheehan excitedly pointed out the signs of a
thriving habitat. Blue-wing teals and cormorants dipped and dove into
the cider-colored waters and diamond-back terrapins sunned themselves
on the mud flats. On many days, he said, the brackish Hackensack is
now clean enough for swimming. As a boatload of old men cast lines for
white perch and striped bass in a nearby cove, Mr. Sheehan and his co-
pilot, Hugh Carola, argued over whether the waterfowl reeling overhead
were white-fronted geese, a species rarely seen on the East Coast, or
simply an escaped pair of barnyard geese.

Mr. Sheehan said that as he was growing up in Secaucus during the
1950's, very few species could survive the industrial effluent and
burning trash that fouled the Meadowlands. "In 1995, when I started
doing ecocruises, people laughed at me and said, `What are you going
to look at, bits of floating garbage?' " he said. Since then, he has
taken more than 16,000 people through the marshes, and on weekends,
boaters flock to a newly created county park, Laurel Hill, to rent
canoes by the hour.

A dozen kayaks are on the way, Mr. Sheehan said, and during the
warmer months his office phones seldom stop ringing. "People are
having birthday parties on the river," he said. "They're using the
Meadowlands in ways they could never have imagined."

Local business leaders, who more recently viewed the Meadowlands as a
place better suited to outlet centers and low-rise warehouses, have
begun to see the possibilities of ecotourism. James Kirkos, president
of the Meadowlands Regional Chamber of Commerce, said his group, which
spent years butting heads with environmentalists, is planning a
marketing effort to promote bird-watching and boating as well as the
new golf courses. "We see great promise in it," he said of the park.
"We're calling it Meadowlands Miracle Two."

EnCap, a Florida-based company, has already begun preliminary work on
a billion dollar effort to transform seven abandoned landfills into
four golf courses, a hotel and 2,000 apartments. As part of the
project, the company will spend $300 million to seal in the ooze of
contamination, which plagues many of the abandoned dumps.

Some local businesses are already trying to cash in on the lure of
the place. Later this month, the Red Roof Inn in Secaucus will start
putting ecocruise brochures in its rooms. Jim Mastrangelo, the general
manager, wants all his employees to take a ride with Mr. Sheehan so
they can better pitch the tours to guests. "I think folks will be
pleasantly surprised to know they can take a canoe out on a marsh that
sits in the shadow of the Empire State Building," he said.

Although the notion of a resuscitated Meadowlands began with the
Clean Water Act of 1972 and slowly built over the decades, the biggest
turnaround in its fortunes occurred last year, when Gov. James E.
McGreevey appointed an environmentalist, Robert R. Ceberio, to lead
the state agency that oversees zoning and development in the 30-
square-mile Meadowlands district. (A few months earlier, the agency,
previously known as the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission,
changed its name to the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission to reflect
its new mission.)

Once largely a vehicle for promoting economic development, which
would have included the filling of 2,000 acres of wetlands, the
commission has put together a new master plan that virtually
eliminates wetlands destruction and steers all future development to
brownfields and other upland parcels that have negligible ecological
value. Business leaders like Mr. Kirkos said they have been cheered by
the plan's growth component, which promises $5 billion in construction
and 55,000 new jobs in the broader Meadowlands area outside the park.

He and others, however, want to make sure property owners are fairly
compensated for land that is acquired for the park.

So far, the commission has been offering $10,200 per acre, an amount
that Tom Bruinooge, a lawyer for several landowners, says is laughably
low. He also objects to the use of eminent domain for seizing parcels
from unwilling sellers. "I have yet to see how 50 acres of degraded
wetland in a mythical park is a true public purpose," he said. Mr.
Ceberio, the commission director, said disputed land values will be
resolved by independent appraisals.

In some ways, Mr. Ceberio's career trajectory mirrors the changes in
the Meadowlands, an area that once covered 21,000 acres. He first came
to the agency in 1981, working in its solid waste division, when 3,000
trucks a day came to pour their wretched cargo over man-made hillocks.

One by one, the agency shut down the landfills and today only one
dump, a repository for clean construction debris, remains in
operation. The dumping fees there, which total about $8 million a
year, help fund an environmental center and restored marsh that sit at
the edge of an old dump.

"There's been a complete change in culture and philosophy here," Mr.
Ceberio said, sitting in an office that provides a quintessential
Meadowlands view: wading egrets, grass-covered landfills and the arc
of the New Jersey Turnpike, all of it set against a hazy silhouette of
the Manhattan skyline. "I can't tell you how exciting times are right
now. It's a little scary."

Dennis Elwell, the mayor of Secaucus, agreed. Nearly enveloped by
swampland, the town and its well-being have always been tied to the
Meadowlands. Mr. Elwell's 88-year-old father can still recall the days
before mosquito-eradication campaigns drained thousands of acres of
marsh and a dam in Oradell choked off much of the Hackensack's
freshwater flow. During the 1970's, the area received 11,000 tons of
trash a day from New York City and towns across northern New Jersey.
The stench was bad enough, but things became unbearable in the summer,
when uncontrolled trash fires burned for weeks on end.

"Some nights," Mr. Elwell said, "you couldn't sit in your backyard it
was so bad."

* * *

# # #

Hackensack Riverkeeper
231 Main St.
Hackensack NJ 07601
Tel: 201-968-0808
Fax: 201-968-0336
Email: in...@hackensackriverkeeper.org
Web: http://www.hackensackriverkeeper.org

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

SHORE BUILDING DRAWS $50,000 FINE

Date: 030513
From: http://www.philly.com/

OFFICIALS SAID A BROOMALL MAN DIDN'T HAVE PROPER PERMITS
FOR WHAT WENT UP IN CAPE MAY COUNTY

By Jacqueline L. Urgo, Inquirer Staff Writer, May 13, 2003

Strathmere - For what it called an "extremely significant" violation,
the state Department of Environmental Protection has levied a $50,000
fine for a oceanfront property built without proper permits.

The DEP halted further construction of the large two-story beach
house in Cape May County located on what regulators have called one of
the most ecologically fragile areas along the Jersey Shore. It also
told the owner to cease construction of an adjacent sewage discharge
field in the 1600 block of Commonwealth Avenue.

Joseph E. Marley of Broomall, Delaware County, began building the
house about a year ago under a "permit by rule" clause in the state's
stringent Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA) regulations, which
would have allowed him to construct a 400-square-foot addition to the
house on the lot, and even to tear down the existing house and build
within the footprint.

Marley had submitted a plan to the DEP proposing to build an
addition. Because the expansion was not to exceed 400 square feet and
was not proposed for the beach, dune or wetlands side of the property,
the DEP told the homeowner he did not need a CAFRA permit, said Amy
Cradic, a DEP spokeswoman.

At the same time, the DEP told Marley that he would need a CAFRA
permit for a septic field he was proposing, to accommodate an
additional bathroom in the home. The DEP informed Marley that in order
to remain exempt from the permit process - which can take months and
thousands of dollars in engineering fees - he would be required to
place a 3,000-gallon holding tank for sewage discharge beneath the
dwelling. This method of collecting waste is necessary because there
is no public sewer system.

But in February, a DEP inspector working in the area noticed that a
new house - apparently larger than the original one - had been
constructed. And instead of the required holding tank, a septic field
was under construction on an adjacent lot.

The DEP immediately issued a stop-work directive, but a follow-up
inspection this month revealed that the order had apparently been
ignored.

The neatly trimmed beige-and-red house, with its wide porches and
turret, appears from the outside to be finished. The wetlands on the
lot next to the house have already been converted into a barren septic
field.

The DEP issued a second stop-work order - meaning that even if the
house were finished, a certificate of occupancy could not be issued -
and levied the $50,000 fine, according to DEP Commissioner Bradley
Campbell.

The owner "knowingly bypassed development permits that protected
coastal natural resources and the safety of those who chose to reside
along New Jersey's shores," Campbell said. "Unchecked waterfront
development can destroy vital wildlife habitat, increase water
pollution, and in some cases cause personal injury or loss of property
from coastal storms, erosion and flooding."

Besides payment of the penalty, the DEP is ordering Marley to submit
an application for a CAFRA permit for the new dwelling as well as a
plan to remove the septic field and restore the site to its "pre-
disturbance" condition.

Marley could not be reached for comment. He has filed an appeal.

Ed Kenny, Upper Township's construction code officer, said Marley
appeared to have been following the guidelines of the original permit
until February, when a two-car garage on the ground level of the
structure had been enclosed.

Kenny said Marley had originally obtained a variance from the
township to build the addition. But when the inspector noticed that
the original house had been demolished down to the pilings, the
township issued its own stop-work order and required the homeowner to
file for a new variance, which officials eventually granted.

The state's CAFRA law regulates almost all activities involved in
residential, commercial or industrial development within the coastal
zone as means of protecting and preserving the environment.

* * *

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

MONROE TIRE CLEANUP STOPPED IN ITS TRACKS

Date: 030513
From: http://www.nj.com/news/gloucester/

By Daniele Cruz, Gloucester County Times, May 13, 2003

Monroe Twp. - Monroe Township officials are glad that the shredding
process is over, but now that the estimated 500,000 tires on Huber
Avenue are in bits and pieces, they don't know what they can do with
them.

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection approved for
the township to shred the tires, but the township never received
approval for what they could do with the tires once they were shred.

"We have no way to get rid of these tire chips at the moment," said
Business Administrator Kevin Heydel, explaining that a request was
submitted to the Commissioner of the DEP earlier this year with a list
of options of what to do with the tires.

"We did that and they denied us," Heydel said.

Mayor Michael Gabbianelli and local environmentalist Edward Knorr
submitted a letter outlining options, such as using the chips for
drainage or passive recreation, to the DEP commissioner, but the
agency's Supervising Contract Administrator Edward Nieliwocki said a
formal application must be submitted by the township administration.

"Right now they have permission to shred them, but now they have to
tell us how they are going to get rid of it," Nieliwocki said. "Some
other counties are doing this. Some are shredding and taking it off-
site and using it in incinerators. Some put it in landfills, as in
Salem (County's) case. Some are also sent down to Delaware for
drainage around septic systems."

The DEP issued Gloucester County $750,000 to be used in Monroe
Township to shred the tires off of Huber Avenue. The money was used
strictly for shredding and no plans were made for their disposal.

The DEP has disbursed $2.4 million over the past two years for tire
disposal in the state. The money was a special appropriation from the
legislature to remove money from the Sanitary Landfill Closure Act.

"There is no such thing as the New Jersey DEP tire landfill fund,"
Nieliwocki explained. "It would definitely take an act of the
legislation to get additional funds."

"I'd like to see us be able to use them," Director of Public Works
James Agnesino said, adding that the township was interested in using
the shredded tires for drainage in certain areas of the town. "We have
definitely eliminated the worst problem, and that is the threat of the
West Nile Virus," said Director of Public Works James Agnesino.

* * *

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

OCEAN COUNTY WASTE DISPOSAL PROGRAM BEGINS

Date: 030513
From: http://www.app.com/

OCEAN COUNTY KICKS OFF SPRING COLLECTION OF
HAZARDOUS HOUSEHOLD MATERIALS

By Erik Larsen, Manahawkin Bureau, Asbury Park Press, 5/13/03

Stafford - Kingston Sparks had the unenviable job of cleaning out his
late father-in-law's house. He found old paint cans and motor oil in
an antique can.

"This is 50 years of him," Sparks said. "Rather than take any
chances, we waited for this day."

The day was yesterday. Ocean County kicked off its Household
Hazardous Waste Disposal Program's spring collection.

The collection began at the Stafford Township Public Works garage on
Hay Road and will conclude next week in Jackson.

The Ocean County Board of Freeholders awarded the industrial waste
contract to Radiac Research of Brooklyn at 27 cents per pound. The
company estimated that his crew would collect 20,000 pounds of
industrial waste yesterday.

"A lot of people think this a dirty business, but we're helping to
clean up the environment in a proper way," explained Ron Vignone,
Radiac's project foreman.

John Haas, Ocean County recycling coordinator, said 450 people had
made an appointment to drop off their waste in Stafford yesterday.
Haas said he prefers that people make an appointment in order to
prevent long lines of cars at the collection sites.

Diane Gomes of Warren, who just bought a second home in Stafford, had
come with old solvents and paints.

"We just moved and started going through the odds and ends," Gomes
said.

Materials that should be dropped off are paint, paint thinner, boat
paints, solvents, pool chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, aerosol
cans, motor vehicle products, toilet and drain cleaners, silver
polishes, over cleaners, photographic chemicals, rug and upholstery
cleaners, polishes and bleaches, waste oil and used gasoline.

Locations, times and dates for the program are: noon to 6 p.m. today,
Brick Public Works garage, 8326 Ridge Road; noon to 6 p.m. tomorrow,
Berkeley Public Works garage: Pinewald-Keswick Road; noon to 6 p.m.
Friday, Dover Township Public Works garage, Church Road; 9 a.m. to 3
p.m. Saturday, Dover Township Public Works garage.

Also, noon to 6 p.m. Monday, Seaside Park, parking lot 3, Ocean
Avenue; noon to 6 p.m. May 20, Manchester Public Works garage, Route
70, and noon to 6 p.m. May 21, Jackson Public Works garage, Don Connor
Boulevard.

To register, call (732) 367-0802 for disposal information for Brick,
Manchester and Jackson; (732) 506-5047 for Dover, Berkeley and Seaside
Park.

* * *

Erik Larsen: 609-978-4582, or at ela...@app.com

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Tina Bologna - Editor - bol...@gsenet.org

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Back issues of the Garden State EnviroNews are available at
http://www.gsenet.org/library/11gsn/11gsn.php

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