To the editor:
Have you received the latest PennEast mailer?
I was distressed to read their latest propaganda, half-truths, and attempts to mislead the public about how the PennEast pipeline will impact Hopewell Township and other communities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Building on last week’s letter from area mayors, I want to clarify the facts and correct the cynical misrepresentations in PennEast’s latest “Open Space” mailer.
PennEast claims that local communities will see MORE open space, not less. This statement could not be further from the truth. In New Jersey, PennEast will cut a 100-foot-plus swath of destruction through miles of preserved open space and farmlands that our community has fought so hard to protect. The current “preferred” route directly impacts Baldpate Mountain in Hopewell Valley. If you look up from Howell Living farm, you can follow the current power lines to see exactly where the pipeline will go. It will destroy the critical breeding grounds for migratory birds and other threatened and endangered species.
No wonder the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, EPA, and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection have all filed critical comments asking that the pipeline and its draft Environmental Impact Statement be reworked and then resubmitted. The potential impacts of the proposed pipeline can’t be overestimated, and sensitive environmental corridors will be permanently impacted by its construction.
As for open space, PennEast is seeking to take advantage of our investments in open space and preserved farmlands for its private gain. It is literally offering pennies on the dollars for these properties. In addition, our township will not see any commensurate compensation for these open space losses — PennEast is only required to buy replacement lands in other parts of New Jersey, in designated zones.
PennEast has failed to justify the public need for its proposed pipeline, and now it is asking us to allow the destruction of our open space and farmlands so that it increases its profits. I have stood up in opposition to this pipeline since it was first proposed and remain resolved to do everything I can to stop PennEast. Long ago Hopewell Township decided to preserve this land for our community. Penn East is just in it for itself.
Julie Blake
Member, Township Committee
Hopewell Township
NOTE: These are my personal views and do not represent the views of the Hopewell Township Committee.
