As He Touts Climate & Environmental Justice Policies, NJ Gov. Murphy’s DEP Proposes Renewal of Newark Garbage Incinerator Air Permit

WHEREAS, historically, New Jersey’s low-income communities and communities of color have been exposed to disproportionately high and unacceptably dangerous levels of air, water, and soil pollution, with the accompanying potential for increased public health impacts;

(read the DEP draft permit renewal and see if you can find the words “justice” or “cumulative impact” or “disproportionate burden”)

According to the DEP draft permit, the Newark garbage incinerator emits over 2.1 million tons of greenhouse gases.

The facility is classified as a major facility based on its potential to emit 34.8 tons/year (tpy) of volatile organic compounds, 138 tpy of nitrogen oxides, 482 tpy of carbon monoxide, 101 tpy of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 10 microns (PM-10), 119 tpy of ammonia, 153 tpy of methane, and 2,157,259 tpy of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).

This permit allows individual hazardous air pollutant (HAPs) to be emitted at a rate to not exceed: 117 lbs/year of acrolein, 466 lbs/year of benzene, 4,300 lbs/year of formaldehyde, 85 lb/year of polycyclic organic matter and 5,020 lbs/year of toluene.

The DEP found that these hazardous pollutants presented a “negligible” and acceptable risk:

A Facility-Wide Risk Assessment was previously conducted on June 25, 2012 and health risk was determined to be negligible consistent with NJDEP Technical Manual 1003. A Facility-Wide Risk Assessment was conducted, with this permit application, for polycyclic organic compound emissions, which are being added to the permit and health risk was determined to be negligible consistent with NJDEP Technical Manual 1003. No further revised Facility-Wide Risk Assessment was conducted, with this permit application, since no other changes were made to Air Toxics (including HAPs) emissions and no changes were made to the risk parameters since the last risk assessment.

We explained in detail why the DEP’s methodology for reviewing cancer and health risks under NJDEP Technical Manual 1003 is seriously flawed and not protective, see:

• Murphy DEP Issuing Permits That Allow Industrial Polluters to Emit Millions Of Pounds Of Carcinogenic Hazardous Air Pollutants Without Adequate Consideration of Health Impacts or Community Involvement

The DEP did not revise their flawed risk assessment methods or conduct an environmental justice review. Instead, they not only rubber stamped the prior Christie DEP risk assessment, they literally ignored Gov. Murphy’s EO 23 on environmental justice. DEP openly admitted this:

No further revised Facility-Wide Risk Assessment was conducted, with this permit application

In addition to the huge greenhouse gas, fine particulate, and hazardous air pollutant emissions, the electric power produced by the plant costs consumers far more than alternative renewable energy sources. (I’m not sure if current electric contract is above market prices, but the original contract was as an “incentive” (subsidy) to “resource recovery” and”private investment”.)

And on top of all that, there is no longer a need to operate the Newark garbage incinerator. (I’m not sure of whether the plant still imports large amounts of garbage from NY City at a lower tipping fee than that paid by Essex County and Newark residents, but the original deal under the Port Authority imported lots of NYC garbage at lower rates than Essex County paid.)

The plant was a technological dinosaur when it was designed in the 1980’s, and was approved just before the Florio DEP 1992 solid waste plan deemed garbage incineration a “technology of last resort” and cancelled about 15 planned incinerators. There are far more cost effective and environmentally sound ways to manage solid waste – recycling and composting.

And on top of all that, the bonds issued to finance the facility have been paid off and the DEP State $48 million loan to the project has been repaid.

The plant should be shut down, not allowed to operate until at least 2022.

A renewal of the permit is an outrage.

The climate emergency and environmental injustice make that shutdown especially compelling.

According to DEP:

So, let me summarize the fatal flaws in this permit:

1. ancient technology, a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, is allowed to continue to operate (license to polluter under RGGI);

2. no environmental justice considerations, including cumulative impacts and disproportionate burdens;

3. flawed risk assessment review and inadequate public health protections

4. cleaner and cheaper ways to manage solid waste;

5. cleaner and cheaper ways to generate electricity

6. consumer ripoff and corporate subsidies.

Let’s hope folks show up at the hearing and demand that the plant be shut down!

(this is a corrected and revised version)