A few weeks ago I posted a correction to the blog where I was talking about PennEast rerouting at the Appalachian Trail crossing (you can get it here https://thecostofthepipeline.com/2015/04/28/clarification-on-appalachian-trail-route-change-in-march-2015/). Basically PennEast had made a number of errors in their scoping response and organizations involved with the A.T. wanted to set the record straight.

At the time there were still some dangling issues that had to be figured out before a formal response could be filed. It appears that the Appalachian Mountain Club has done their homework there and followed through, and their response has hit the FERC docket today:

http://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?accession_num=20150519-5093

What I think I love the most about this comment is how specific it is. It lays out in detail exactly what PennEast got wrong and then painstakingly corrects all of their mistakes, and demands that PennEast responds with at least the same level of detail if not more. After they describe the information they provided and their preferred resolutions, the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) writes:

In March and April of 2015, the applicant submitted several documents to FERC responding to the comments received to-date, a response to scoping comments on March 13th, a supplemental response to scoping comments on March 26th, and another supplemental response to scoping comments on April 27th.345 In response to these filings by the applicant, the AMC notes that the applicant failed to meaningfully respond to the comments submitted by the AMC and other stakeholders, and failed to adequately consider the comments received in re-routing portions of the preferred alternative, most notably, regarding the crossing of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail.

They then list the scenarios where PennEast did not address their concerns, starting with:

In the comments AMC submitted in February, it was stated that the applicant had not demonstrated appropriate strategies to avoid and minimize damages to recreational and natural resources of public lands, particularly the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, and provide for mitigation where impacts were unavoidable. AMC asserted that the preferred route should be realigned adjacent to existing infrastructure which would minimize disruption and fragmentation of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail by a new right-of-way. In particular, we recommended that the project cross the Appalachian National Scenic Trail adjacent to an existing power line west of the Delps Trail as one example of a location where co-alignment could be achieved to minimize impacts. The National Park Service (NPS), the agency that owns and manages the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, offered similar suggestions for re-routing the proposed project, and even included maps illustrating preferred routes adjacent to existing infrastructure at four different places nearby the original route.

Their findings on PennEast’s response?

The applicant seemingly ignored these recommendations in moving the preferred route to the west of its original route, at location that was not suggested by the National Park Service, AMC, or Appalachian Trail Conservancy7 (the commenters). In the applicant’s Supplemental Response to Scoping Comments, dated April 27th, PennEast gives a summary, one-sentence response to the concerns of the commenters: “The proposed crossing of the Appalachian Trail has been realigned to avoid federal lands and sensitive habitats.”.8
AMC disputes the applicant’s claim that the realignment avoids federal lands and reiterates the previously submitted comments on the docket of the AMC, NPS and ATC in that the preferred route should be realigned to be adjacent to existing infrastructure where it is proposed to cross the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Despite the applicant’s statement that the realignment avoids federal lands, the realigned route still crosses Federal lands as illustrated by the maps submitted on the docket by NPS9, and still violates 30 U.S.C. § 185, appearing to cross the Appalachian Trail at tract #331-09, a National Park Service owned easement.

[…]

The preferred route realignment would create a new right-of-way crossing the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, a condition that the commenters seek to avoid and which the applicant appears to have dismissed without response. A new right-of-way crossing comes with steep costs: forest fragmentation, noise pollution, habitat destruction and the propagation of invasive species, and negative impacts to the outdoor experience of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail’s many visitors, including a loss of the scenic beauty, quiet solitude, and sense of wilderness which makes the trail a national treasure for long-distance and day hikers. The applicant should be required to propose a preferred alternative during pre-filing that is realigned to avoid the creation of a new right-of-way, as was suggested by AMC, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and the National Park Service.

They then go on to list numerous other issues in PennEast’s response in relation to negative upstream and downstream impacts of the proposal, issues with dependent impacts, citation of out dated research to support gas-fired compressor stations as opposed to electrical, and ignoring pending guidance on greenhouse gasses and climate change.

I urge everyone to download their comments and read them in full, they are a perfect model of how to get people’s attention and force PennEast to respond. They close with this statement:

In conclusion, the responses to the comments of AMC by the applicant are incomplete and misrepresent the recent realignment of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail crossing as a meaningful response to public comments received. The applicant should be required to follow the recommendations of the AMC, NPS and ATC in realigning the Appalachian National Scenic Trail crossing to be adjacent to existing infrastructure and provide substantive responses to the other issues raised by the AMC and the thousands of other individual citizens, stakeholder groups and agencies who took the time to write comments or to speak at hearings. AMC requests that the applicant submit a more comprehensive response to these concerns in the docket before the conclusion of the pre-filing period.

Note how in the end they call for PennEast to “submit a more comprehensive response to these concerns in the docket before the conclusion of the pre-filing period”. This is a smart call, don’t let PennEast squirm away from this on a technicality and let it slide before pre-filing closes.

Well done, AMC. Well done.

I’m excited to announce that a citizen’s group is being created called the West Amwell Citizens Against the Pipeline. The purpose of this group is to do our part to help preserve our township’s character and its investment in conservation and open space by opposing the PennEast pipeline. This will be a non-profit organization that will serve as both an informational source to let residents know what’s going on with PennEast, and also as a platform of active opposition to the pipeline company itself.

I know many people in the township believe that PennEast is inevitable and that fighting it is pointless. I don’t believe this is the case. Not at all. While the government has a history of rubber stamping these projects in the past, this time it’s different. I’ve talked to journalists in the area and they’ve said that they have never seen the level of opposition that they’ve seen in against PennEast. One reporter I spoke to said “I’ve been writing for 20 years and I’ve never seen as much push back by so many”. People here and around the country are waking up to the reckless over-exploitation of resources by fracking companies, and how pipeline consortiums are rushing in to lay pipe as fast as they can before the money runs out. Politicians are waking up to this fact, and old policies of going easy on energy companies are being looked at in a very hard light. We are at a unique point in history where we can stand up and make a change, and together we have an excellent chance to stop PennEast dead in its tracks.

At the core our organization objects not only to the route that PennEast has proposed through West Amwell, but we also object to the entire idea of the pipeline in general. No matter what route this pipeline takes, it is an unwanted blemish upon the country side, a source of constant danger to people living nearby, and a project that will further the purposes of the fracking industry. Its construction and ongoing operation will cause unwarranted damage to the ecosystem and foster increased use of fossil fuels.

We contend that this entire project is unnecessary, and that our existing natural gas infrastructure is more than adequate to meet our current energy needs. Development for the future should focus on investment in renewables, not in hydraulic fracturing.

The organization will assist landowners directly impacted by the pipeline and get them the information they need to help understand their legal rights, including their right to deny survey access to the pipeline company. We’ll help educate residents on how to deal with PennEast, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commmision (FERC), and other government entities. And we will work in conjunction with other regional CAP organizations such as Delaware Township Citizens Against the Pipeline, Hopewell Township Citizens Against the PennEast Pipeline, stoppenneast.org, and others here in NJ and in PA to organize our opposition against PennEast.

We’re still in the early stages of forming the group. A web site is being put together, I’m working on incorporation and non-profit status, and also talking to other citizens groups in the area to see how best to proceed.

If you would like to join the organization and help out, or just want more information on what we’re doing, please contact me. Also please forward this to any of your neighbors who you think might be interested.

If you’d like to get more information in person I’ll be attending the Delaware Township Citizens Against the Pipeline meeting today, Thursday, May 14th. Sorry for the short notice! The meeting will be held at 7:30 at the Delaware Township School (http://www.dtsk8.org/). The DTCAP organizers have graciously invited all West Amwell residents to attend and get more information about fighting the pipeline.

We’ll get more information sent out once it’s available, including the web site information and particulars for a first formal meet up.

Please note that this group will not be officially tied to the West Amwell Township municipal government, but we will strive to work with our elected officials wherever possible. Together we can make a difference and beat this thing!

When people ask me why I started this blog, I always relate the story of how I started searching through the FERC docket for PennEast and was struck by the poignancy and sheer brilliance of some of the submissions.  These aren’t documents written up by a lobbying firm or copy edited by a marketing team.  They’re not paid advertisements.  None of it’s coming from professional reporters.  They’re just the sincere thoughts of ordinary residents in the area.  After I had read my 20th or so submission I knew I had to publicize some of these stories.

This is one of them.

Winifred and Jeffrey Waldron live in Holland Township.  I highlighted one of their FERC submissions awhile back:

https://thecostofthepipeline.com/2015/03/09/winifred-tells-it-like-it-is/

They have a beautiful property in Holland, 7.5 acres of land in the rolling hills that are a major attraction of this section of Hunterdon County. In an earlier FERC submission Winifred describes what their property is like and what it means to them:

I grew up in a rural area and planned to raise my family in a similar environment here in New Jersey, “The Garden State”. When I completed my residency program, my husband and I had to decide where we going to settle our family. While touring different properties, we found a secluded, flag lot, surrounded by trees, not too far from the road, on a hillside with a little stream running through the woods and no easements. Even in the winter, it was a gem. I had fallen in love with the land as soon as I saw it. I was already imagining sledding with the kids on the hillside, gardening, exploring the woods and stream. We have lived here for more than 10 years now. We have invested in the land, removing debris dumped in the woods and stream, planting trees and cultivating the soil for the gardens, fruit trees and berries.

You can imagine my resentment when the Western Land Services land agent, Larry Gilbert, showed up at my home and threatened to take my land when I balked at the thought of having a natural gas pipeline constructed through my property. The agent reminded me “this is New Jersey and we have eminent domain”.

Visiting children call our house, “The house with the playground”, or the “park”. They are referring to the multiple places outside to explore. Our children and their friends have had sleep overs – camping in the back yard. They play hide and seek in the woods. In August, we watch the meteorite showers from the hill. We have campouts in the backyard and use our fire pit on warm summer nights. We watch the bats dipping down to snatch bugs attracted to the lights.

I was nodding my head as I was reading this because Winifred’s description reminds me so much of our property in West Amwell. Ironically we also have a flag lot and fire pit :-). All of Hunterdon county is like this, it’s a remarkable area that takes people familiar with the eastern portion of the state by surprise.

Winifred’s complete original submission is available below. I recommend everyone take a look, the style is a delight to read and the facts and analysis are sobering.

http://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=13789196

You would think that people like the Waldrons who have spent a considerable amount of time researching this pipeline and objecting to many aspects of it would be able to catch PennEast’s attention, right? Maybe they would sit and up and listen to dedicated individuals like this?

Nope. Jeffrey and Winifred wrote to me a couple of weeks ago to share the frustrations they’ve had in dealing with PennEast and the endless layers of deceit and trickery they’ve had to endure. To get a better picture the impact PennEast is going to have on them, here’s a shot of their property (outlined in red) with the 400′ pipeline survey corridor in blue:

They begin:

Hi Michael,

I am also an affected landowner of Penn East in Holland NJ and I wanted to thank you for your recent submission scolding Penn East to tell truth. The pipeline cuts my property literally in half and is currently situated to be approximately 150’ from my house and well. My barn is in the construction corridor and Penn East will not make any statement on its status (whether it be leveled or not) unless we grant permission to survey- which we are also continuing to deny.

Our initial exposure to Penn East was Larry Gilbert from Western Land Services last August. He came in our home and showed us the map of the pipeline on our property. When we pointed out how it would cut us in half, his response was, “Oh well”.

When we refused permission to survey, he told us our property would be surveyed without our permission and that if we felt the need to be “uncooperative” that our land would be taken from us using eminent domain.

We attended 3 of the 4 open houses in PA and NJ to register our dismay and get more information. We got no information as we were passed along from one person to another and Mr. Gilbert was at every meeting despite Mr. Cox telling me at the first meeting “that is not how we do business”. I guess that’s a lie too that further evidence has proved out. We complained to the FERC representative, Medha Kochhar, at the final open house regarding all of this and we were passed on to Alyssa Harris who promised to call us in 48 hours to review our concerns. Our phone has still not rung. At the landowners meeting in Holland in April, she presented her card to my wife who pointed out we were still waiting for a phone call. Ms. Harris had no response and still no call.

If you’ve read my notes from the Frenchtown PennEast landowners meeting, then what the Waldrons are describing should be familiar to you.

https://thecostofthepipeline.com/2015/04/14/last-nights-penneast-meeting-at-razzberrys-in-frenchtown-nj-part-1/
https://thecostofthepipeline.com/2015/04/16/penneast-meeting-at-razzberrys-in-frenchtown-nj-part-2/

If one or two people were complaining about PennEast abusing their trust and trying to force them to give survey permission you might pass it off as no big deal. But every land owner I’ve talked to has been pressured by PennEast the way the Waldrons have described, and are tired of getting a run around from PennEast. They smile and promise you answer to questions – and then they promptly forget it and never call you back. Repeated requests get the same smiling response, and still nothing ever happens.

The Waldrons conclude:

Our property, all 7.5 acres of it, is completely and clearly posted and we are fully prepared to take whatever legal action we must should they decide to trespass. We have grave concerns about the effects on the water, the wells, the trees and wildlife that this area so richly contains. A large portion of one half of our property is NJ designated wetlands and cannot be developed or manipulated, at least by us. We have taken great care to preserve and monitor those areas. Moving from Vermont, we never thought we could find property in NJ which could be this tranquil and native. We have nesting Bobolink birds and Jack in the Pulpit flowers on our property, both are listed as threatened/endangered species. We have Cooper Hawks and have had a few Bobcat sightings. We want to keep our property this way and are engaged in the fight. We also attended the Holland scoping meeting but were among the 20-30 people who were denied the opportunity to speak. Ironically, when we spoke to Ms. Kochhar from FERC at the open house, she told us we would have the opportunity to speak and express our concerns. Another lie. We did submit comprehensive comments but how seriously and completely they will be reviewed is another question especially given Tetra Tech’s status with Marcellus shale. It is like asking the fox to design the security system on the henhouse.

I am disheartened at what appears to be a rubber stamp from FERC and Penn East’s perception that they just have to check the boxes to get it done. Penn East shows no real concern or interest in the affected landowners, unless they need survey permission. I do not want to see their level of interest once they have it. They have already manipulated the maps and now have recently changes the mile markers and removed building structures etc. from their maps to further obfuscate the truth of the impact the pipeline will have. We hope to stay unified and further the fight and hope our government is actually responsive to the people they are sworn to serve. I constantly wonder how this pipeline promotes our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It seems that everybody forgets that’s why we have this country in the first place.

I could continue to rail on but realize that all of us that are affected have had bad experiences and continue to have worries. We must continue to persevere and stand united. I, we thank you for your time and efforts and we will continue the fight.

In response I can only thank them for all of the considerable time and effort they’ve spent fighting PennEast, and to stand with them and continue to fight. The best thing we can do collectively is to document all of our efforts, keep sending comments into FERC so they are officially logged, and most importantly to keep denying survey rights to PennEast. The one thing PennEast cannot do is come on your land to survey, they can only do that with your permission. Deny them that and they won’t physically be able to do their Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), and thus won’t be able to build their pipeline.

Even though the number of comments to the FERC opposing PennEast have been impressive, we could do better.  I know a lot of people in particular get frustrated trying to navigate the FERC site.  It’s down constantly, and even when it’s up you have to navigate a crusty old web site that feels like a throw back to 1998.

Well, you don’t need to do that anymore.

The Delaware Riverkeeper Network has created a page to make it trivially easy to send a note to the FERC docket:

http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/act-now/urgent-details.aspx?Id=187

You can choose to either write your own message, edit the sample provided by the Riverkeeper, or just send the default form as is. You can also choose have the DRN either send your submission in electronically, or have them print and mail it.

Some come on folks! Take 5 minutes out of your day, visit the site and add your voice to the opposition. Let the FERC know the depth and breadth of opposition PennEast faces and that their pipeline is not wanted or needed.