Governor Murphy will deliver the most important address of his Governorship to date on Tuesday, January 15th at 2pm in the Statehouse. We’ll be there to greet him with a strong, unified message: “You can’t fight climate change and achieve 100% renewable energy while continuing to approve new oil and gas pipelines and power plants. New Jersey needs a moratorium on fossil fuel projects now!” We’ll meet in the Cafeteria in the basement level of the Statehouse Annex Building, located at 131-137 W. State St. in Trenton at 12pm. Once there we’ll handout our moratorium signs and brief participants on our plans for the event. Email msmith@fwwatch.org to RSVP and with any questions you may have.
The Women’s March movement has emerged as one of the most powerful, intersectional forces in the US progressive movement. On Saturday, January 19th our campaign will join forces with the NJ Women’s March on Trenton. We’ll march together with signs and banners that amplify our local fights and visualize our demand for the Governor to enact a moratorium on fossil fuel development. And by joining the march we’ll seek to demonstrate that fossil fuel pollution and climate destruction disproportionately impact women and particularly women of color. Meet us at the NJ Sierra Club office at 125 W. Hanover Street in Trenton on Sat. Jan. 19th at 10:15am. We’ll distribute some signs and banners (or feel free to make and bring your own!) before we march two blocks to join the beginning of the Women’s March at 11am. Email msmith@fwwatch.org to RSVP and with any questions you may have.
The NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) has scheduled a Public Hearing for the Freshwater Wetlands Permit Application for the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project with Compressor Station 206 and pipelines in Old Bridge, Sayreville, and through Raritan Bay.
Rally will be outside at 5:30 p.m.
If built, the compressor station emissions will pollute the entire area for decades, and, once in operation, there is little doubt that the company will add more turbines in the future. We need to tell the NJDEP that we oppose the construction of Compressor Station 206 as well as the pipelines which will dredge up even more pollution. The risks to our safety and health demand that we stand up for ourselves, the environment and future generations. Come out and bring friends and neighbors.
HEARINGS: People do not need to arrive at 6PM or stay for the entire hearing.
* NJDEP staff will facilitate the meeting.
* People usually get 3 minutes to speak at a microphone in front of the group about their concerns, and a stenographer records it. It’s not like the FERC meeting where you went into a separate room.
* If you want to speak, sign-up when you arrive. Talking points will be provided.
* Pre-written comments can be submitted at the meeting & more comments can be sent after the meeting up until November 20. Include your name & full address on written comments.
* We DO expect that pro-NESE people will be there to voice their support (like they were at the FERC public meetings), so we need many concerned folks there to tell NJDEP why we do not want NESE.
NJDEP’s PUBLIC HEARING RULES OF CONDUCT
The purpose of the hearing is to gather public comment from anyone who wishes to speak. Any action taken by any person that prevents the public from commenting is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Anyone who violates these rules of conduct may be removed from the hearing.
* No signs mounted on sticks, or otherwise attached to an object, are allowed within the auditorium
* No food or drink is allowed within the auditorium
* Please remain seated until called forward to provide comment
* No interrupting when someone is speaking
* No unruly/disruptive behavior (i.e. yelling, chanting, use of foul language)
* Testimony will be limited to three minutes per speaker
The NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection has agreed to demands of Roseland against the Compressor Station, supported by the district’s state legislators, to hold a public hearing on the proposed Gateway Expansion project. If approved, the project would create a massive new fracked-gas compressor station immediately next to an existing compressor in Roseland New Jersey, and would increase the amount and pressure of fracked-gas through a 60+ year old pipeline in Roseland and 15 other Essex County communities.
The company behind the project, Williams Transco, is a major fossil fuel corporation with a long history of environmental violations and deadly explosions. Williams Transco currently has several new fracked-gas pipeline and related infrastructure expansion projects proposed all throughout New Jersey and the region. This public hearing is an opportunity to unite all our individual fights against Williams Transco, and send a clear message to NJDEP and Governor Murphy: No more pipelines through our communities and water sources! Our health and safety must be prioritized over fossil fuel industry profits!
The public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, August 7th at 6pm at the West Essex Regional High School, located at 65 W. Greenbrook Rd. in North Caldwell, NJ.
MEADOWLANDS POWER PLANT CONCERNS — POLITICO’s Danielle Muoio: A proposed power plant that would be built in New Jersey’s Meadowlands and exclusively feed electricity into New York City is facing regulatory headwinds as it moves through the permitting process. Developers of the North Bergen Liberty Generating plant are seeking approval to build a natural gas facility in the town that would feed electricity into midtown Manhattan via an underground cable in the Hudson River. The developers, Diamond Generating Corporation, say the 1,200-megawatt plant would reduce electricity costs for New York ratepayers, boost local coffers, increase reliability and create more than 2,000 temporary construction jobs. Nearby residents and environmental groups say the plant would pollute the environmentally-sensitive Meadowlands region with no gain in local service or reliability. The proposal has received its first set of permits in New Jersey, but it’s facing some hurdles across the river. In recent filings with the New York Public Service Commission, Con Ed and New York City officials expressed concerns over the developer’s permit request to build the transmission line and have called on the PSC to enact a more rigorous review process. The comments indicate that, even if the project appears to be moving forward quickly in New Jersey, several challenges remain in New York.
Welcome to the new legislative session!
Advocates from across New Jersey have been working with Senate President Sweeney to respond to the ongoing problems created by the termination of the extended Emergency Assistance program for individuals with disabilities. On January 28, the Anti Poverty Network; Steve Leder, Senior Attorney from the Community Health Law Project; and Staci Berger, President and CEO of the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, stood with Senate President Sweeney as he announced his proposed legislation to address this issue and provide a permanent housing solution for the state’s most vulnerable residents.
The proposed legislation will be heard in the Senate Health, Human Services, and Senior Citizens Committee this Thursday, February 4. We need your help to make sure the bill moves forward:
- Please email and/or call members of the Senate committee. You may email individually or send a message to the entire committee.
Here is a sample message: I’m a voter in New Jersey and I’m calling to urge you to vote in favor of Senate President Sweeney’s Emergency Assistance bill which will ensure that individuals with long-term disabilities are not pushed into homelessness as the result of arbitrary time limits on housing aid. This bill represents an important protection against the devastations of poverty and I hope you will support it. Thank you.
- Come to the committee hearing and show your support for this legislation! The committee meets at 11 am on February 4, in Committee Room 4, First Floor, State House Annex, in Trenton. I will be there to represent the Unitarian Universalist community and hope to see you there.
