(Reprinted from Amboy Beacon, Nov. 17, 2010)
PERTH AMBOY — The City of Perth Amboy will not have to “go it alone”
after-all in its fight to stop construction of a massive natural gas pipeline through densely-populated residential areas.
In June, the Council adopted a Resolution declaring that “it is not in the best interest or welfare of the citizens of Perth Amboy to have these pipelines run through the city.”
Until now, however, governing bodies of neighboring municipalities have not seen-fit to adopt similar measures, even those communities which would be directly-impacted by the proposal. Only the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders had adopted a Resolution opposing Liberty’s plan.
However, environmental activists from Monmouth County who have fought successfully against similar proposals attended last week’s City Council meeting to offer their support to Perth Amboy to block an application filed by Dela ware-based Liberty Natural Gas LLC, which includes building a liquified natural gas (LNG) regasification facility near Asbury Park — 16.2 miles off the swimming-beaches of Monmouth County — to turn the product brought-in by huge tankers in its most-dangerous liquid form into a gaseous state.
Karina Wilkinson of Food & Water Watch, who commended the Council for adopting its Resolution in June, said the first step is for the city to file with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to become a “party- of-interest.”
She said thaat this would put the city on a mailing-list to receive all notices of hearings and other documents pertaining to the application submitted by Liberty recently to FERC.
“Before they can do anything, the state has to approve 19 different permits,” Sean Dixon of Clean Ocean Action noted. “There’s a lot of room for you guys to get-involved.”
Resident Alan Silber suggested that because of its “lack-of-expertise,”
the Mayor and Council should “hire comeone to represent the city” in this matter.
The proposal calls-for an underwater pipeline from the regasification facility to turn northward, rounding Sandy Hook and dropping to the bottom of Raritan Bay before surfacing in Perth Amboy at the foot of Second Street, where the 36-inch pipe would travel under only three feet of soil — with virtually no security — along the NJTransit right-of-way through heavily-populated residential sections of the historic “City by the Bay” and parts of Woodbridge Township, Carteret and Rahway before eventually ending-up at a terminal in Linden.
The pipeline would be used by Liberty to transport “from sources around the world” up-to 2.4 billion cu.ft. of natural gas every day. Under the Deepwater Port Act of 1974, approvals must be issued by the U.S. Maritime Administration and the Coast Guard to operate the regasification facility and the underwater pipeline.
According to Wilkinson, Gov. Christopher Christie, who has announced his intention to oppose such plans, would have a 15-day window-of-opportunity to veto Liberty’s proposal.
“Obviously, it’s an issue we’re concerned-about,” Councilman Kenneth Gonzalez said.
“As a volunteer firefighter, I can tell you that being buried under three feet (of soil) makes no difference at-all,” Councilman William Petrick said.
As originally-proposed, the pipeline would follow a route that would pass near the Wilentz School on its way to the Perth Amboy train station, travel through Hidden Village, past the Patten School, run along Harbortown and under the Outerbridge Crossing, and continue past Kinder-Morgan, Chevron, Hess and the Northeast Redevelopment Area.
However, a spokesman for Liberty said the plan as submitted to FERC has been revised to bypass the School and instead go-by the now-vacant Gerdau Ameristeel plant.
A Resolution opposing the pipeline which was adopted by the Council in June identifies the route proposed for this pipeline — passing tank farms containing petroleum products and other dangerous chemicals — as “one of the highest-potentially-hazardous routes along the East Coast.”
Recognizing the need for a united front by city officials, organizations and residents to do whatever they can to block construction of the pipeline, Council members have acknowledged that mounting a successful effort also will require alliances with officials and residents of neighboring communities as well as elected state and federal lawmakers.
A similar alliance was successful in defeating a proposal several years ago to construct a huge LNG holding-tank on neighboring Staten Island.
Then-Community Development Director Michael Keller said in June that in addition to the negative impacts, Perth Amboy has nothing to gain financially from hosting such a pipeline.
“To my knowledge, there is no compensation to the city for having this pipeline,” Keller stated at that time.
“Why wouldn’t we get paid for it?” Council President Kenneth Balut asked.
“Because they’re mostly using the NJTransit easement,” Keller replied.
At last week’s meeting, resident Orlando Perez told the Council, “I uderstand you’re concerned, but the petroleum industry is very-powerful, and they’ll put-up a battle.
“These guys are vultures,” he continued. “You’re going to have a tough battle here.”
“I attended the press conference, and there’s a lack of any real need for this,” resident Daniel Dellapietro said. “It’s going to hold-back our redevelopment.”
Resident Stanley Surokowski called Liberty’s plan “a done-deal” where the city “has no power,” so “the best thing you could do is ask them to give us
$5 million-a-year — that’s peanuts to these guys — because they're going to do it anyway."
In 1994, an 11-inch Texas Eastern natural gas pipeline in Edison was struck accidentally by a backhoe, exploded and destroyed eight apartment buildings in the Durham Woods complex. One woman died there from a heart-attack.
The pipeline being proposed by Liberty is much-larger, and there could be a railroad accident or even sabotage. By continuing it underwater, there would be less-chance of ignition in the water, and the natural gas could safely dissipate.
When the LNG tank was proposed for Staten Island, a study-group put-together a worst-case-scenario of a ship accident that would have resulted in New York City and a sizable area of New Jersey being virtually wiped-off the map.
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