FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
NESE Fossil Fuel Project is Back: Towns Don’t Want It, NJDEP Shouldn’t Either
Trenton, NJ - On July 16th, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) declared the Williams - Transco’s Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project land use application administratively complete. The application is posted online for public view here.
This dirty fossil-fuel project proposes:
Construction of a proposed new gas-powered compressor station (the most polluting type) in Franklin Township near Trap Rock Quarry.
3.5 miles of new connecting pipeline through Old Bridge and Sayreville, referred to as the “Madison Loop,” which would cut through critical wetlands, several residential developments, Route 9 through Westminster Boulevard, the NJ Parkway in Sayreville, and underneath the NJ TRANSIT railroad.
23 miles of new pipeline under the Raritan Bay/New York Harbor, which would dredge up thousands of tons of contaminated sediment and release toxins like arsenic, lead, and PCBs.
The resurgence of the NESE project has seen little to no public engagement thus far. Transco fast tracked their petition with FERC and the window for public comment closed on June 24th with little to no outreach to the towns and counties in NESE’s path.
Currently, the NJDEP is providing a 30-day public comment period, the bare minimum required by law, on Williams Transco’s application for its permits for the project including Flood Hazard, Stormwater, Freshwater Wetlands, and Coastal Zone permits. Without further action the public will only have until August 15th to comment on the application, with no scheduled public hearings.
Municipal opposition against NESE is growing. So far, Keyport, Franklin, Matawan, Montgomery, Aberdeen, Union Beach, Highlands, Hazlet, and South Brunswick have passed resolutions opposing Williams Transco’s compressor and pipeline proposal.
Organizations fighting to stop this dirty gas project include the Sierra Club, NJ League of Conservations Voters, Food and Water Watch, Climate Revolution Action Network, Waterspirit, Surfrider Foundation, NY/NJ Baykeeper, NRDC, ReThink Energy NJ, Clean Ocean Action, among many more.
“Every single town that NESE will tear through deserves a public hearing, period. This dirty project will rip up sensitive wetlands that provide a natural buffer to protect homes from flooding, destroy habitat, go through families’ backyards, and under high traffic highways like the Parkway; this is an extremely dangerous and already overdeveloped route that does not need the public safety risk of a leak or explosion, and residents do not even have the chance to be heard,” said Taylor McFarland, NJ Sierra Club Conservation Program Manager. “The Sierra Club strongly urges the NJDEP to extend the comment period for NESE’s land use permit application to 90 days, and hold public hearings in every impacted community.”
“The public has made it clear time and again that New Jersey doesn’t want more dangerous fossil fuel infrastructure — especially not fast-tracked behind closed doors,” said Matt Smith, New Jersey State Director at Food & Water Watch. “The NESE pipeline threatens public health, drinking water, marine ecosystems, and the climate — all to pad the profits of a polluting gas company. Rushing this process without public hearings is a disgrace. Governor Murphy and the NJDEP must extend the comment period and hold hearings to give impacted residents a real chance to speak out.”
“New Jerseyans have made it clear: we don’t want the unneeded dirty NESE pipeline. This dangerous project threatens our waterways, wildlife, and communities—all for the benefit of billionaire oil and gas CEOs trying to cash in on Donald Trump’s agenda to put profits over people," said Ed Potosnak, Executive Director, New Jersey LCV. "It’s already been rejected three times for good reason. We cannot allow backroom deals to override the will of the people, hurt communities, and harm the health of our environment. New Jersey LCV stands firmly against NESE, and we call on all our leaders to say no—again—and for good.”
“Studies show the NESE pipeline is unnecessary and would lock us into decades of fossil fuels, threatening our clean energy future." says Patty Cronheim of ReThink Energy NJ, "Given the extensive pollution the pipeline and its polluting compressor station would cause to New Jersey’s water and air, our communities deserve a thorough review with local hearings and an extended 90-day comment period to allow for meaningful expert analysis."
“It is our responsibility to protect water, not just for ourselves, but for all beings and future generations. The proposed revival of the Williams Transco NESE pipeline and compressor station is an unacceptable threat to that responsibility. This project still risks permanently contaminating vital waterways and accelerating the climate crisis-all to move dirty, deadly fracked gas not intended for local use,” said Rachel Dawn Davis, Waterspirit’s Public Policy & Justice Organizer. “Waterspirit calls on state and federal representatives: do not advance this project any further until the public has been fully informed, given fair and accessible hearings and told the full truth. No one should be asked to sacrifice their water, their health or their future for short-term corporate gain. It is time to protect what is sacred.”
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