DEP approval still needed before pharmaceutical expansion can be built
By:John Tredrea
The Hopewell Township Committee voted unanimously March 1 to endorse Bristol-Myers Squibb’s (B-MS’) amended water quality management plan (WQMP) for the firm’s 433-acre pharmaceutical research campus in the east-central township.
The amended WQMP is a key component of B-MS’ proposed major expansion of the campus, from 1.1 million square feet to 2.8 million square feet. The expansion would allow the firm to increase its workforce from the current 1,600 employees to between 5,000 and 6,000 workers, B-MS says.
The WQMP must be approved by the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) before the expansion can be built. About six months ago, the DEP said it would delay its decision on the WQMP until it had been subjected to a vote by the governing bodies of Pennington Borough and the township. Pennington voted to endorse the plan two months ago.
During a series of public meetings held since last summer, hydro-geological consultants hired by the township and borough said the chances of the B-MS expansion having a detrimental effect on existing wells are slim to none. B-MS gets all its water from onsite wells and will continue to do so if the expansion goes through as currently proposed.
Under the B-MS water plan, the amount of water pumped from the aquifer after the expansion has been constructed would be an estimated 166,700 gallons a day, on a peak summer day. This is the same amount used now, on a peak summer day.
Enabling B-MS to hold the line on the gallonage its wells would pump from the aquifer is the component of its WQMP calling for recycling of 515,000 gallons a day. The recycled water, which would be used for air-conditioning and industrial purposes, would be taken from a pond on the B-MS site. Discharged into the pond is wastewater from the research park’s on-site sewage treatment plant.
B-MS and the township have been negotiating on the firm’s WQMP for months. Before voting on the plan March 1, Township Committee members said they are quite satisfied with it.
The plan "helps to achieve necessary protection" for residents’ water supplies, Deputy Mayor Jon Edwards said.
Committeeman Robert Higgins agreed. "I believe we have achieved substantial protection for our groundwater" by inducing B-MS to add a series of safeguards to the water plan, he said.
The B-MS public affairs and communications office issued a statement saying the firm is "pleased that the Hopewell Township Committee has consented to our Water Quality Management Plan amendment. Our plans are environmentally sound and we are committed to continuing to protect and enhance our natural surroundings."
Township Mayor Marylou Ferrara noted that B-MS has "given us the right to monitor" water usage on the firm’s research campus. Under a developer’s agreement with the township, also approved 4-0 by the Township Committee March 1, that monitoring can include on-site visits by township inspectors and officials should township government deem such steps necessary.
B-MS also has agreed to fix or replace any existing wells impaired by the firm’s operations. In order to qualify, those wells would have to be in the Zone of Influence of the B-MS wells. The boundaries of the Zone of Influence, which are set by the DEP, extend about 4,000 feet, in every direction, from the periphery of the B-MS tract.
The proposed expansion of the B-MS facility is permitted in the General Development Plan (GDP) the firm acquired when it bought the facility from Mobil, for $41 million, several years ago. The GDP was signed by the township and Mobil in 1990; it remains in effect until 2010.
B-MS spokeswoman Tricia Haugeto said Monday it is not yet possible for her firm to provide a target date for the completion of the proposed expansion.