by the New Jersey Sierra Club

As you know, the Sierra Club has been working to stop the deepening of the Delaware River and the subsequent dumping of potentially toxic dredge spoils on South Jersey. The federal government has deemed the project a waste of money, NJ and DE Congressmen are opposed to it, but Pennsylvania wants the project to go forward.

Now we have learned that a deal has been struck between PA Governor Rendell and NJ Governor Corzine that ignores everything we have been asking for.

Deal on Deepening to be Announced Thursday

We have confirmed the details of the agreement that has been struck between Governors Rendell and Corzine regarding the Delaware River deepening project.
Governor Rendell will be announcing this agreement on Thursday morning at a DRPA meeting (10AM, One Port Center, 2 Riverside Drive, Camden, NJ), the first DRPA meeting to be held since the PA/NJ feud over the deepening began in earnest.
The terms of the deal include the following:

• Pennsylvania's PRPA will become the project sponsor;
  
• Pennsylvania will be asking the Army Corps of Engineers for an updated EIS to be issued within a 6 month period;
  
• NJ will retain whatever limited permitting authority it might hold for the project and will seek to release a permit decision on some kind of expedited basis;
  
• NJ makes no financial commitments to the project now or in the future;
  
• All of the spoils are to go to the State of Pennsylvania;
  
• A committee with reps from PA, NJ and DE will have to agree unanimously on the dredge spoil disposal plan for the project.
  
• The DRPA $38 million that was previously set aside to fund the project will be divided between NJ and PA to use as they see fit. NJ says it will use the funds for environmental projects and a port improvement effort.

This agreement has been in the works since March 6th. Opponents of the deepening project in the State of New Jersey have been seeking and denied a meeting with Governor Corzine to discuss the issue since the Fall of 2006 and certainly have had no say into the deal that was struck. No South Jersey legislators were included in the conversations surrounding the deal or the negotiations themselves. No one from the State of Delaware has been included in the conversations or negotiations for this deal.

What we need you to do:

1. Attend the DRPA meeting Thursday morning to oppose the announcement. We are not sure how the announcement will be made or if there is any opportunity for public comment but having folks there to oppose the project and to speak to the press before and after the announcement is critical.

• 2. For all NJ organizations and citizens, write the South Jersey legislators, or really any of the NJ State legislators, to ask them to call for legislative hearings to investigate and review the deal that has been cut. Sample text for such a letter is attached. Alerts to your membership to secure citizen letters as well would be terrific.

Statement of the New Jersey Sierra Club to Be Made at the DRPA Meeting:

As a senator and as a candidate for governor, Jon Corzine committed to opposing the Delaware Deepening project. Now he's breaking his word to the environment and to the people of New Jersey.
The New Jersey Sierra Club opposes the deepening because of the major environmental consequences it will bring. First, it would allow for contaminated dredge spoils to be suspended in the river, impacting fisheries, especially shell fisheries. Second, the blasting of the river bottom deepening would entail could impact the aquifers New Jersey depends on for its drinking water, either by allowing freshwater to leak out or salt water to get in. Third, deepening the river channels will mean that a greater volume of freshwater will be needed to hold the salt water line in the river at its current position. Without this extra volume, the salt water line will move further north, threatening both groundwater and surface water intakes.

This project is a nearly $500 million pork barrel project that hurts the environment without providing any real benefit to the Port of Philadelphia, first because the proposed 45 foot deepening falls short of the 50 feet needed to bring in the largest container ships, and also because in order to reach Philadelphia, a ship must travel 100 miles further in each direction than it would to either Newark or Norfolk. Please do not sell out the environment and the people of New Jersey.

The Sierra Club will vigorously fight this project and oppose both permitting and approvals, especially any fast tracking of permits or shortcutting the environmental impact statement process. We will fight this will all our hearts and will take it to court if necessary. We will also hold any and all politicians who approve this bad deal responsible.

(The New Jersey Sierra Club is a member of the Alliance to Dump the Delaware River Deepening.)
>>> Fact Sheet on the River Dredging