Gov Must Protect Clean Water: Veto DuPont Bill, Stop Fracking Waste, Help Pompton

We are waiting for Governor Murphy to take action on S879 (Sweeney)/A3116 (Burzichelli). The bill amends definition of “existing major hazardous waste facility” in “Major Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Act.” The bill would allow Chemours and their leasees, such as DuPont, to import hazardous waste from all over. This would expand the volume of waste and would expand the variety of categories of hazardous materials. The Chambers Works facility was identified under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) Toxics Resource Inventory as the largest discharger of hazardous waste in New Jersey for many years.  In 2010, for instance, DuPont was the biggest polluter in New Jersey and the 4th biggest polluter in the country. This bill has been on the Governor’s desk since April 13^th and he has until May 31^st to make a decision.

“New Jersey’s waters and communities are threatened by DuPont and fracking waste and the Governor must act to protect us! We need him to veto dangerous legislation, stand by his commitments to ban fracking in the Delaware Valley, and protect the people of Pompton Lakes who are suffering from contamination. He must veto the dangerous bill because it will allow the DuPont facility to bring in more and different hazardous waste to be treated in New Jersey, even possibly fracking waste. It caters to special interests over protecting the environment and communities of New Jersey by reverting to older permits that allow for more pollution. We could see more pollution in the Delaware River and Bay because of this bill and that’s why we oppose it,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “This bill will open the environment, the public and the Delaware River to pollution and safety risks. We need Governor Murphy to stand up for clean water and the environment by vetoing this bill.”

DuPont has a history of violations at the Chambers Works facility. For instance, in 2011 in a settlement agreement with USEPA, DuPont paid a $250,000 civil penalty to settle alleged violations of hazardous waste regulations at Chambers Works. The Chambers Works Facility has never conducted an anti-degradation analysis for the release of treated wastewater or any analysis on the bioaccumulation of toxins in the ecosystem and, if allowed this loophole, wouldn’t have to do an analysis showing there is no significant adverse impact on the environment and public health from the discharge of hazardous pollutants there. DuPont’s attempt to bring VX Nerve Agent to the Chambers Works Facility for dumping into the Delaware River in 2004-2006 and similar extremely dangerous efforts could arise again if the facility is allowed this loophole.

“We need this proposed legislation vetoed because it creates a loophole that redefines a hazardous waste facility so that Chambers Works can get away with handling more and different types of hazardous waste. In the case of a flood or accident, this toxic witch’s brew could spill into our communities. Currently, they can only discharge waste generated on the site. This bill would allow the import of hazardous waste from all over, including wastewater from fracking unless the DRBC bans its import. It would allow them to use old, outdated permits to pollute more. This bill caters to the special interests over the people and environment of New Jersey.” said Jeff Tittel. “Our concern that without a ban on fracking waste, this bill would allow DuPont and other facilities to bring fracking waste into our state and River Basin.”

We also need to do more to protect the environment from fracking waste. We need a complete ban of fracking activities by the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), including not allowing dumping fracking waste or taking water for fracking activities elsewhere. Having a partial ban that actually allows the dumping of fracking waste still puts the drinking water and environment of the Basin at risk. Dumping fracking wastewater is dangerous because it contains over 600 different toxic chemicals, many of them carcinogenic. This could lead to pollution and contaminated drinking water. Without a full ban, it could also allow for facilities such as the proposed Elcon Hazardous Waste Facility to be built to dispose of frack waste while also threatening our environment and drinking water.

“We’re also urging Governor Murphy to keep his commitment to banning fracking and fracking waste in the Delaware region. Murphy had written to the DRBC supporting a fracking ban if it contains a ban of the taking or dumping of water or frack waste. This also helps prevent more pipelines and other fossil fuel projects such as the proposed Elcon frack waste incinerator from being built in the Valley. Given the change in Administrations at the federal level, it is more important than ever that we protect our resources,” said Jeff Tittel. “It seems that the Administration is backing away from Murphy’s commitment. Administrative officials including Acting DEP Commissioner McCabe claimed they were studying the issue of fracking waste, when they should be outright against it.”

The Murphy Administration has also not been proactive on the clean-up of the DuPont site in Pompton Lakes. When asked about it during the budget hearing, Acting DEP Commissioner McCabe seemed to blame the victims while claiming satisfaction at the efforts to deal with the toxic vapors. DuPont’s contamination affected multiple waterways in Pompton Lakes, including the Wanaque River and Acid Brook, which run through the 600-acre former DuPont property. Pompton Lake, a backup drinking water supply for a major reservoir in the region, has also been affected.

“McCabe’s misleading statements on the Pompton Lakes clean-up are troubling and sounded like the Christie Administration. Not only did she blame the homeowners for not dealing with the vapor intrusion, but she claimed that the clean-up was working. In reality, Pompton Lakes is still suffering from decades of pollution from DuPont and the plume is still under homes. DuPont wants to use an experimental technique on the communities of the region,” said Jeff Tittel. “Neither McCabe nor Murphy has met with the local citizens as they promised to do. Perhaps if they did, they would realize that the Pompton Lakes site’s toxic threat is more than double the score required for Superfund designation.”

Fracking is part of a complicated extraction process with a spider web of infrastructure that extends many miles from the well pad. At virtually every turn, the process contains public health hazards. Residents living near an active site breath air laced with carcinogens, including benzene and formaldehyde, and research has shown an increase risk of asthma, a decrease in infant health and worrisome effects on the development of a fetus, such as preterm births and birth defects. A study of fracking wastewater disposed of in rivers and streams found that chemical contaminants in the waste were transformed into more toxic substances when they chemically reacted with chlorinated compounds discharged from downstream drinking water treatment plants.

“Governor Murphy must do everything to protect New Jersey and the Delaware Basin from the hazards of fracking, frack waste, and other contaminates. He must veto this dangerous bill that would allow DuPont to get away with polluting our water supplies. We also need the Administration to follow through on their promises to ban fracking and all fracking activities that threaten the region. We need to be sure we’re cleaning up toxic sites such as Pompton Lakes and preventing more contamination, whether it’s from frack waste or elsewhere,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “The Governor must fix the DuPont mess whether it’s through vetoing bad legislation re-opening the plant, preventing fracking waste from coming into the Basin, or dealing with the nightmare of Pompton Lake. He is the Governor for all of us and has made commitments to protect us and our drinking water. He must stand by those commitments!”