The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
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TRENTON, NJ – In a major environmental victory, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette have announced a record-breaking $2 billion settlement to address widespread contamination from toxic PFAS chemicals and other pollutants. This is the largest environmental settlement ever reached by a single U.S. state.
pictured Pleasant Brook
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Upper Saddle River NJ, perhaps the Boroughs of Saddle River ,Upper Saddle River and Mahwah could have a talk to the New Jersey AG about Apple Ridge .
Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that the licensed operator of the South River Water Department, the public drinking water system for South River Borough in Middlesex County, was arrested today and charged with submitting false water samples and records to a lab that tests such samples for coliform bacteria for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
Robert Baker, 56, of Mine Hill, N.J., was arrested early this morning and charged with a violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act, a third-degree crime. He was charged in an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau, the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, and the South River Police Department.
Continue reading AG GOES AFTER SOUTH RIVER WATER DEPARTMENT FOR FALSIFYING WATER PURITY TESTING
photo courtesy of Derek Michalski
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Ridgewood Nj, a reader made some strong point promoting what they claimed was “protecting the environment “
“So the problem of carrying food home is a false argument: someone goes to the store and carries their own bags, which are empty, they carry the bags home, full. Whether or not they carry their own bags to the store has NO bearing on what they are carrying home! They are carrying the same weight home whether or not they carry their own bags into the store.
Continue reading Reader asks ,”why doesn’t the Assemblywoman care about cleaning up our environment? : and we ask why doesn’t New Jersey ?
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Ridgewood NJ, The American Lung Association released its 2019 State of the Air report showing New Jersey continues to have some of the most polluted air in the nation. Ground level ozone pollution – smog – continues to increase across the state, although there were some areas of improvement. For instance, particle pollution – soot – continues to decline.
Continue reading The American Lung Association : New Jersey Worst Air Quality in the Country
photo Apple Ridge, Mahwah NJ
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Students across New Jersey and around the world skipped school today to participate in “climate strikes” protesting global inaction on climate change.
Children are fast becoming the face of the climate change movement as teenagers, ‘tweens and even younger children file lawsuits, stage walkouts and lobby lawmakers. But question continue to be raised about whether the students are being motivated or manipulated.
Meanwhile closer to home right here in Bergen county many ecological disasters take place daily and no one blinks and eye .
Continue reading Phony “climate strikes” and raising taxes have not fixed New Jersey environmental problems
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Trenton NJ, The proposed FY2020 budget is coming out on Tuesday. Governor Murphy’s budget FY2019, DEP saw a decrease in overall budget while operations went up slightly. The Clean Energy Fund was also raided by $160 million from its previous budget year. NRD money from the Exxon and Volkswagen Settlement were also used for the general budget, however Murphy cannot use NRD money to balance the FY 2020 budget.
“Last year’s budget was balanced on the backs of the environment, we concerned about this year’s proposed budget will do the same. FY2020 is coming out and there may be cuts or money grabbed to plug budget holes. Last year the Murphy Administration took close to $500 million from environmental programs to balance the budget. This year, the Murphy Administration have already committed to taking $140 million form the Clean Energy Fund and given the problems, it could mean more. Now since Murphy cannot grab NRD money anymore, DEP’s budget may be targeted along with other environmental monies,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.
Continue reading Murphy Budget Raids Environmental Settlements
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Upper Saddle River NJ, Derek Michalski reports again on the runoff from the Toll Brother site at Apple Ridge, “Dark and Stormy in USR today on this gloomy Friday December 28, 2018. We are experiencing heavy rain and another storm water violation on the part of Toll Brothers in Upper Saddle River. This time laden with arsenic and lead mud (sorry “colloidal clay” as NJDEP wants us to call this 12th month long pollution) is allowed to being discharged directly into our public drains. And not even one Toll Brothers employee or USR town zoning officer on the site paying attention to lack of silt barriers and even the cheepest hay barriers. Truly pathetic how this site is being overseen.
Continue reading Apple Ridge Environmental Tragedy Continues
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Upper Saddle River NJ, for over a year we have covered the story of the devastating impact of the run off from the Toll Brothers site at Apple Ridge. To date nothing as been done to protect the environment of Bergen County , not one politician or DEP official has lifted a hand . So for the talk from the Murphy Administration on “Green” New Jersey, it is nothing but talk and a ruse for tax increases.
Derek Michalski, from the group GreenUSR – (Upper & Saddle River, Ramapo and Pascack Valley Communities). Wrote yesterday :
“Most people and corporations in this beautiful country end every year on a positive note and with charitable giving activities. With God’s love in someone’s heart you can make a difference with giving. However Upper and Saddle River residents are experiencing another form of giving/receiving or should I rather say ”mud dumping” or “mud receiving“ into their backyards and local aquifer. Apparently Toll Brothers moved their makeshift pump deeper into the “arsenic field” so without the drone no one can see it. How pathetic this situation is when one of the largest construction company in America is allowed to permanently destroy local aquifer in one of the most affluent zip codes in America. Welcome to the land of apathy – zip code 07458. Passing year reminded us during those 12 months of ongoing mud pumping laden with arsenic and lead how close we are to the third world countries in the way behave sometimes. Also did I say Merry Christmas”
“For the naysayers who don’t believe court-forced overdevelopment in New Jersey impacts environmentally sensitive areas please read this article.” , Assemblywomen Holly Schepisi
APPEALS COURT APPROVES HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IN HIGHLANDS
TOM JOHNSON | AUGUST 7, 2017
Court defers to DEP’s expertise regarding wetlands, endangered species, and impact of proposed sewer connection on water quality
A state appeals court approved a much-contested plan to build a housing development in the Highlands, setting aside concerns by opponents that it would adversely impact environmentally sensitive land and habitat at the 85-acre site.
The court found the state Department of Environmental Protection acted properly in approving a scaled-down 204-unit housing development in Oakland on High Mountain, a scenic vista in the heart of the Highlands.
The project initially goes all the way back to 1987, when the Bi-County Developers brought suit against the borough to build the development as part of a builder’s remedy to erect some low- and moderate-income housing.
The court’s ruling on Friday is the latest twist in a dispute that predates the 2004 enactment of the Highlands Act, which sought to more closely monitor development within the region. The New Jersey Highlands Coalition and New Jersey Sierra Club, which brought the suit, argued the project should not have been exempted from the act due to being grandfathered in.
The environmental groups also argued that permits for the project should not have been granted because of concerns about wetlands, endangered species, and a proposed sewer connection’s impact on water quality.
In siding with the DEP and the developer, the court deferred to the agency’s expertise on those issues in reaching an agreement in 2014 to grant permits for the project. That decision reversed a ruling by the Corzine administration, which had blocked the project, until contested by the developer.
July 25,2017
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Ridgewood NJ, An anonymous tipster alleges that the Village’s tree crews are illegally dumping wood chips too close to the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook, on a walking path connecting Maple Field to the Graydon Pool parking lot.
Several years ago, NJDEP formally cited PSE&G for doing the same thing, only PS was dumping the chips on their right of way, which adjoins the Brook between Spring Avenue and Grove Street.
We assume the Village will plead ignorance to the law?
Updated on June 8, 2017 at 7:19 AMPosted on June 8, 2017 at 6:42 AM
BY ROB SPAHR
NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
The jellyfish with a dangerous sting that caused a scare on the Jersey Shore last summer, prompting the cancellation of several events, have reappeared in a Monmouth County river, researchers say.
Clinging jellyfish – whose sting can cause “excruciating pain”, muscle weakness and serious medical problems, including kidney failure – were observed and recorded in New Jersey for the first time last June, specifically in the Manasquan and Shrewsbury rivers, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
As a result, the DEP and Montclair State University initiated a sampling plan to assess the abundance of jellyfish in New Jersey waters.
April 13,2017
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TRENTON NJ, Following months of sufficient precipitation, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin today lifted a drought warning for 12 of 14 counties in the northern, central and northern coastal regions of New Jersey and removed a drought watch for four counties in the southwestern part of the state.
Commissioner Martin signed an Administrative Order removing, Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Sussex, Union and Warren counties from drought warning status and removing Burlington, Camden, Gloucester and Salem counties from drought watch. These advisories had been in place since October.
Round Valley and Spruce Run reservoirs in central New Jersey both remain below normal capacity. Round Valley is at about 72 percent capacity and Spruce Run is at about 69 capacity, due in large part to less precipitation in this area over the winter.
As a result, Hunterdon County and Somerset County, which are primarily served by these reservoirs, will remain under a drought warning. This allows for continued modified passing flows designed to conserve storage.
“The return of soaking and well-timed precipitation over the winter and early spring has resulted in steady improvements in our drought indicators for most of the state,” Commissioner Martin said. “In particular, storage levels in the major reservoir systems that serve the densely populated portions of northern New Jersey are at full capacity entering the time of year when water demand peaks.”
“Water levels are increasing across the state in response to recent rains,” said State Geologist Jeffrey L. Hoffman. “Reservoirs, with the exception of Round Valley and Spruce Run, are more than 90 percent full. Stream flows and groundwater levels are trending upward, which is a good sign. We will continue to closely monitor indicators in all parts of the state.”
The Round Valley and Spruce Run reservoirs, operated by the New Jersey Water Supply Authority, is typically at 94 percent this time of year.
“By maintaining the reduced passing flow requirement, the authority would expect to save anywhere between seven to ten billion gallons in the reservoirs over the upcoming summer months, which will allow the reservoirs to continue to improve,” said Beth Gates, executive director for the authority.
While most regions of the state are now under normal water supply conditions, Commissioner Martin reminds the public to always practice water conservation, especially when watering lawns and landscaping, which accounts for a significant portion of water use in the spring and summer.
“I want to thank water suppliers and residents in the affected areas of the state for working with us to conserve water,” Commissioner Martin said. “I urge everyone to always be mindful of not wasting water. We should not forget the images from last fall of the muddy slopes of receding reservoirs as we turn our attention to maintaining our lawns and landscaping this spring.”
Some suggested lawn and garden water conservation tips include:
Do not over-water lawns and landscaping. Two times per week for 30 minutes in the morning or late afternoon during drier periods is typically sufficient.
Use a hose with a hand-nozzle to water flowers and shrubs.
Do not mow your grass too short. Set mowing height to at least three inches. Longer grass blades help retain soil moisture, improve root growth and encourage a healthier lawn.
Avoid watering lawns and plants during the heat of the day, since much of this water will evaporate without helping your lawn.
Reduce the size of your lawn by establishing gardens that use native, drought-tolerant vegetation.
Apply mulch around shrubs and flower beds to reduce evaporation, promote plant growth and reduce weeds.
Use barrels or other containers to capture rainfall for use in watering. Cover the openings with fine screens to prevent mosquitoes from laying eggs in the collected water.
Use a broom to sweep sidewalks and driveways rather than a hose.
To save water in the home:
Fix leaky faucets and pipes.
Turn off the faucet while shaving and brushing teeth.
Install faucet aerators.
Run washing machines and dishwashers when full, or make sure to select the appropriate wash cycle for the load size.
Take shorter showers.
Install a low-flow toilet.
For more state water supply status information, visit: www.njdrought.org
To view Commissioner Martin’s Administrative Order, visit: https://www.nj.gov/dep/drought/docs/ao2017-05.pdf
For more tips and information on the importance of water conservation, click on the logo above or visit: www.nj.gov/dep/watersupply/conserve.htm
file photo by Boyd Loving
April 2,2017
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Ridgewood NJ,recent rains are making head way toward alleviating the drought in Jersey,The Division of Water Supply and Geoscience within the Department of Environmental Protection, regularly monitors various water supply conditions within the state based on the different Water Supply Regions. The water supply conditions aid the Department in declaring the regions as being within one of the four stages of water supply drought, Normal, Drought Watch, Drought Warning, and Drought Emergency.
Bergen County finds is self still under a “drought warning” as of March 26th ,but what does that mean?
A drought warning represents a non-emergency phase of managing available water supplies during the developing stages of drought, and falls between the Watch and Emergency levels of drought response. The aim of a Drought Watch is to avert a more serious water shortage that would necessitate declaration of a water emergency and the imposition of mandatory water use restrictions, bans on water use, or other potentially drastic measures. Under a drought warning, the commissioner of the DEP may order water purveyors to develop alternative sources of water or transfer water between areas of the State with relatively more water to those with less. While mandatory water use restrictions are not imposed under a Warning, the general public is strongly urged to use water sparingly in affected areas.
BERGEN COUNTY
Teterboro Airport: 1.45 inches
River Vale: 1.32 inches
Palisades Park: 1.26 inches
Ridgewood: 1.23 inches
Tenafly: 1.05 inches
( https://www.nj.com/weather/index.ssf/2017/04/nj_rainfall_totals_from_march_31_storm.html )
POSTED BY: MATT ROONEY MARCH 10, 2017
The facts speak for themselves once you get past the hysteria.
Do your homework: Each Wal-Mart superstore can employee several hundred (or more) employees, Save Jerseyans, depending upon its size. These stores provide employment opportunities and affordable goods particularly in areas where the population is struggling and/or lacks sufficient levels of education or skilled training. It’s a win-win for the local community and the overall economy.
https://savejersey.com/2017/03/snake-toms-river-wal-mart-jobs/
February 19, 2017 at 3:00 AM
Smart companies (and states) make long-range plans based on the most accurate data available. But New Jersey’s real estate and home-building industries, the state’s water utilities and, indeed, any N.J. company that depends on a reliable water supply can’t do that right now. The Statewide Water Supply Plan — a document that details where the water for New Jersey’s future is and is not — has not been updated since 1996, despite a state statute requiring that an updated report be provided every five years.
Certainly, the Department of Environmental Protection has been working on an update. But, as Rutgers professor and former DEP official Daniel J. Van Abs said in a Feb. 7 column for NJSpotlight, a new draft plan was “last seen” in 2012, when it was presented to the Water Supply Advisory Council — a panel of water company officials, academic scientists and various nonprofits that advises the DEP on water issues. Since then, nothing has happened.
The DEP says it is still collecting data, but Van Abs and others believe Gov. Chris Christie is sitting on the report because the news is not likely to be good. Their theory is that an updated report could stymie development in the state, and the Christie administration does not want to be bound by it.
