Tag: NJDEP

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Dr. Fishbein Provided an Update on the Soil Remediation Project at Orchard School

Orchard School

 

the staff of the Ridgewood bog

Ridgewood NJ, Dr. Fishbein provided an update on the soil remediation project. A letter was sent on February 7, 2020 to update the community on steps that have been taken since the last communication.  Dr. Fishbein shared that NJDEP signage has been installed in three locations on the Orchard property.  As a precautionary measure and to alleviate some concerns, additional mulch was installed on the playground.

Historic soil testing reports and other documentation was added to the dedicated page on the website. Dr. Fishbein has requested an earlier meeting date from the New Jersey Department of Health; however, at this time, he doesn’t have confirmation of the exact date and time of that public meeting. The district has consulted with an LSRP from LAN Associates, as well as a third recommended LSRP. The NJDEP deadline for completion of the remediation project is February 2021; however, the work must be done during the summer months.  Click here to view the presentation.

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Orchard Elementary School Soil Remediation Plan Update

Orchard School

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood Board of Education sent out and email addressing the latest updates concerning the status of Orchard School fields soil contamination .

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Amazing three-year-long period the NJDEP has never visited (to my knowledge) the site during the “discharge activities”

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Derek Michalski

Upper Saddle River NJ, Wednesday January 29, 2020, twenty seven days after January 3, 2020 discharge/pumping/overflow (or whatever terminology you want to use describing releasing millions of gallons of brown water per week into Pleasant Brook/SaddleRiver) and 4 days after filing consecutive complaint with NJDEP Mr. Roy Otto representing Bergen County Soil Conversation representative visited the site on a clear sunny day. When I asked him why they never show up while Toll Brothers discharges the mud a/k/a “colloidal clay” he couldn’t answer and referred me to his bosses. To be honest I don’t suspect any foul play on his part but it is laughable that in three-year-long period they never visited (to my knowledge) the site during the “discharge activities”. He also advised me to send him any pics of pumping since he wasn’t present during any such activities. I connected him with Lisa Rozner from CBS who was eyewitness of such illegal in my opinion activities. Perhaps I am wrong and perhaps all major developers in the state of NJ hoist their 5 inch fire hoses and pump stormwater into neighbors’ ponds. Perhaps. That’s New Jersey for you. And to those officials who still live under the rock please refresh your memory and please watch Lisa’s program again: https://www.google.com/…/23/bergen-county-brown-streams/amp/

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ENVIRONMENT & HOME VALUES: Does drinking water quality affect house prices?

pleasent brook upper saddle river

file photo by Derek Michalski

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Upper Saddle River NJ, ENVIRONMENT & HOME VALUES: Does drinking water quality affect house prices? GreenUSR home values are still in decline. How about air pollution and other forms of environmental impact (100 acres tree removal, etc.). Perhaps it is time to study the following concept?

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Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club,”We have a crisis in New Jersey when it comes to drinking water and crumbling infrastructure”

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ, Today the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee will continue to take testimony from invited guests concerning the administration of the “Water Quality Accountability Act.” The 2017 law imposes certain testing, reporting, management, and infrastructure investment requirements on water purveyors. The law sets a limit of three violations before mitigation must be done. It also states that every water purveyor must implement an asset management plan designed to inspect, maintain, repair, and renew its infrastructure, as well as a cyber security plan. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club released the following statement:

Continue reading Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club,”We have a crisis in New Jersey when it comes to drinking water and crumbling infrastructure”
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Apple Ridge Stop Work Order Lifted by Upper Saddle River

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Upper Saddle River NJ, On August 28, 2019 the following email was sent to Toll Brother by Boswell Engineering lifting the Stop Work Order on that portion located in Upper Saddle River.

Please allow this email to summarize the chronology of this project since the issuance of a Stop Work Orders for this project on July 23, 2019. This email will also rescind the Stop Work Order issued on July 23, 2019 subject to the terms noted below.

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New Jersey Officials Continue to Drop the Ball on Newark’s Water Problems

bottled water

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Newark NJ, after spending the better part of the last 2 years attacking everything that is “Trump”, New Jersey officials failed to take any action to fix Newark’s water problems . Several other New Jersey cities are currently facing a similar fate.

But in a joint statement issued Sunday afternoon, Gov. Phil Murphy and Mayor Ras Baraka said safe drinking water was critically important and called on the federal government to help.

The EPA tested and found high levels of lead with filters in two residences in Newark. The agency strongly encouraged the city of Newark to take immediate action. DEP Commissioner McCabe responded to EPA that, “EPA has not offered any support in providing bottled water to the city or in distributing that bottled water. Given the concerns EPA has here, we hope that EPA will offer assistance promptly.”

Continue reading New Jersey Officials Continue to Drop the Ball on Newark’s Water Problems
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New Jersey Sierra Club : DEP Must Hold Public Hearing on Ringwood Superfund Settlement

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ringwood NJ, The New Jersey Sierra Club sent a letter to DEP Commissioner Catherine McCabe requesting a public hearing for the Consent Decree regarding cleanup of the Ford Superfund site in Ringwood. The letter also asked to extend the public comment period from 60 to 120 days. NJSC noted the complexity of the site and the public interest in the issues involved in making the requests. The EPA recently struck a $21 million settlement with the Ford Motor Company and Ringwood on a plan to cap hazardous materials on the site. (See NJSC letter to DEP attached)

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NJDEP Goes after 5 Chemical Companies for Millions of Dollars Due to Contamination

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Its all about the money while local polluters are ignored NJDEP goes after deep pockets .

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ, Clean Water Aciton praised NJDEP announcement today identifying 5 chemical companies — Solvay, DuPont, Dow DuPont, Chemours and 3M — as “responsible for extensive contamination and directing them to fund millions of dollars in assessment and cleanup efforts” (see NJDEP release embedded below). 

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Reader says ,”Mayor of Saddle River has no interest in protecting our (Drinking)wells”

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“I live along the River in Saddle River and have been complaining to our Mayor and Administrator about this for over 1 year now. Al Kurpis the Mayor of Saddle River has no interest in protecting our wells. He has done nothing to help protect the residents of Saddle River’s who live along the river, He actually told Upper Saddle River Residents he was too busy with the Town Election in 2018 to get involved, to reach out after June and to date has done nothing to keep the residents water safe in our town. In fact in the last few years he was working on a plan to sell our Water to Suez…Crazy Idea that was, thank goodness we had a few council members who saw the potential impact of that on our town. The DEP actually permitted this project allowing them to pump the contaminated water into the Pleasant Brook which flows into The Saddle River…Someone at the DEP needs their heads examined. “

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Village of Ridgewood Kings Pond NJDEP Permit Application Plans

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog 

Ridgewood NJ, Kings Pond Park, including the associated Gypsy Pond Park, is a public, municipal park spanning close to the entire length of Goffle Brook through the village of Ridgewood in Bergen County, New Jersey. It is the second largest wildscape in the village of Ridgewood and one of the larger wooded areas along the lower Bergen-Passaic border.

Kings Pond NJDEP Permit Application Plans https://mods.ridgewoodnj.net/pdf/engineering/projects/kingspond/18035KingsPondNJDEPPermAppPlans.pdf


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The Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division found the NJDEP violated the law when it comes to radon testing

NJDEP

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ, On November 2nd, The Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division found the NJDEP violated the law when it comes to radon testing. The court found that the DEP improperly revised rules on radon testing and mitigation oversight. The DEP made regulatory changes by holding certified measurement businesses accountable for the work of affiliates. Because New Jersey outsourced testing to over 400 people, the amount of NJ certified businesses in radon testing dropped by 200.

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FBI indicates Interest in potential Clean Water Act Violations and Possible Cover Up at Apple Ridge in Mahwah

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Upper Saddle River NJ, according to Derek Michalski the moderator of the Facebook group  GreenUSR,  “After proposing on this site an Environmental Debate between incumbent Josh Gottheimer and his opponent John McCann reporter from CBS News called and interviewed me for the story. When I announced this on October 13, 2018 I immediately noticed that mud is no longer being pumped into Pleasant Brook/Saddle River. Today I spoke to the same reporter and she confirmed that she has also reached out to NJDEP and NJ Department of Agriculture for comments. Immediately after she spoke to them Roy Otto from Bergen County Soil Conservation Department called me. When I asked him what sparked his sudden interest in our situation after 10 months of NOT RETUTNING ANY CALLS he said “let’s not talk about what caused me to call you””.

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Democratic Congressman turned a blind eye to this unprecedented 10 month environmental disaster in Upper Saddle River

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photo courtesy Derek Michalski

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Upper Saddle River NJ ,  the Group GreenUSR , is challenging Congressman Josh Gottheimer and his rival John McCann to debate the environment .

The Environmental Debate between Congressman Josh Gottheimer and his opponent attorney John McCann is being proposed by GreenUSR. Will small brook in Bergen County called Pleasant Brook/Saddle River oust popular Democratic Congressman who turned a blind eye to this unprecedented 10 month environmental disaster time will tell. John McCann is ready to rumble! So are GreenUSR members.

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Major Breakthrough in a 10-month Investigation in Toll Brothers Alleged Sludge Pumping into Local Brooks from the Apple Ridge Development in Mahwah

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photo by Derek Michalski , Pictured: Chairman of Mahwah Environmental Commission Richard Wolf documenting ongoing pollution at Toll Brothers construction site in Mahwah and Upper Saddle River.

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Upper Saddle River NJ, Major breakthrough in a 10-month community investigation started back in January 2018 by GreenUSR activist and resident of Upper Saddle River Derek Michalski.

Ramsey, Mahwah, Upper and Saddle River. Over the weekend residents from Ramsay, Mahwah and Upper Saddle River met for the second weekend in a row on the property that was featured in April 23, 2018 CBS New York Evening News coverage. We all remember Channel 2 Lisa Rozner’s report from 5 months ago about those infamous hoses pumping mud into Upper Saddle River stream directly from 100 acre site that had arsenic in the past.* Since that day very little has been done to stop the mud pumping that is occurring now 24/7 according to eyewitnesses. Last weekend the site was visited by Richard Wolf, Chairman of Mahwah Environmental Commission. This weekend Councilwoman Janet Ariemma took initiative and also met with residents and visually inspected continuous mud discharge into the Pleasant Brook.

Continue reading Major Breakthrough in a 10-month Investigation in Toll Brothers Alleged Sludge Pumping into Local Brooks from the Apple Ridge Development in Mahwah