Original Framers of Pinelands CMP Oppose SJ Gas Pipeline
Three original framers of the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan have written letters to the Commission calling on it to reject the South Jersey Gas pipeline because the route clearly violates the terms and the goals of the CMP’s protections for the Pinelands Forest Area. Terrence Moore was the founding Executive Director of the Commission, where he served for 20 years in drafting and implementing the CMP. John Stokes was the founding director of planning at the Commission, and later served as Executive Director. Over 30 years he was a central figure in designing and enforcing the CMP. Robert McIntosh worked for the National Park Service on the creation of the Pinelands protection program and represented the Secretary of the Interior on the Pinelands Commission for many years and across a range of Democratic and Republican Administrations in Washin gton, DC. These three men bring unequaled experience and expertise in the workings and meaning of the Pinelands regulations.
Each of these individuals understand the purposes and meaning of the specific CMP regulations which South Jersey Gas is trying to circumvent in order to build a very high-capacity gas transmission pipeline across the Pinelands Forest Area. The CMP prohibits infrastructure like the proposed pipeline from being built in the Forest Area unless it is needed to serve those already inside the Pinelands. These letters explain in detail why the pipeline would not “primarily serve only the needs of the Pinelands” within the meaning of the CMP, as required of any such pipeline before it can be built within the Forest Area, and why approving the project would set an extremely damaging precedent for future development of the Forest Area.The fact that these founders of the Pinelands program have never before submitted comments to the Commission on a pending development application since retiring from their official positions, but have all done so now, shows how critical this issue is to the integrity and success of the Pinelands protection program. Read the letters here:
I plead with you to deny the Application for South Jersey Gas and do not grant them permission to put a Natural Gas Pipeline through the Pinelands, a world ecosystem with an aquifer that supplies fresh water to millions of people. This violates the Comprehensive Management Plan that is in place to protect this sort of movement to develop the Pinelands. This is an ecosystem for us, the people and all of the life in the Pinelands. It should not be open to a profit making corporation. Besides being a violation, this dirty fossil fuel infrastructure has to stop, we must stop wasting our money on this trajectory of fossil fuels and more CO2 and Methane leaking into our environment. Put this money into solar and wind and give us a chance to have a livable planet.
Thank You, Steven Lee
I plead with you to deny the Application for South Jersey Gas and do not grant them permission to put a Natural Gas Pipeline through the Pinelands, a world ecosystem with an aquifer that supplies fresh water to millions of people. This violates the Comprehensive Management Plan that is in place to protect this sort of movement to develop the Pinelands. This is an ecosystem for us, the people and all of the life in the Pinelands. It should not be open to a profit making corporation. Besides being a violation, this dirty fossil fuel infrastructure has to stop, we must stop wasting our money on this trajectory of fossil fuels and more CO2 and Methane leaking into our environment. Put this money into solar and wind and give us a chance to have a livable planet.
Thank You, Louise Lee
With the foresight of the three creators of the CMP, it is a no-brainer that SJG’s project would be an invasion to the Pinelands’ Forest Area and compromise this sensitive, fragile area forever. This does not even take into consideration of the disruption to the environment in the building the pipeline, the maintaining of the pipeline and what about spills. NJ should NOT put money into disastrous energy projects – go sustainable and renewable.
Thank you for voting NO on this NO-Sense proposal.
I am against any development which destroys or negatively impacts the pristine lands in New Nersey that are still left. I strongly support these 3 men and their mission.
Thanking you for sharing the letters from John Stokes, Terry Moore, and Bob McIntosh. These men provided great leadership and protection for the Pinelands on their respective watches. The current Executive Director is the exact opposite.