Friday in the Pines

Mr. Bill Wolfe recommended that the Commission impose an administrative moratorium on any waivers or MOAs until it performed a critical review of the status of “equivalent levels of protection” in an open and transparent way. He said this was a recommendation he had made during the discussions of the South Jersey Gas (SJ Gas) application in July 2013. He said the documents posted on the Pinelands Preservation Alliance’s (PPA’s) web site reveal that Commission staff had engaged with the applicant starting back in 2012. Also, he described other information that he characterized as showing conflicts. He said the Committee’s upcoming closed session this morning would not constrain him from speaking about legal concerns related to the MOA. He said the public has no confidence in the Commission’s Executive Director or the Counselor due to the revelations in the posted documents. He said the Commission needs to ask for whom its staff works. There had been ongoing conversations with the governor’s office and the Board of Public Utilities (BPU). Mr. Wolfe said the Executive Director is supposed to review staff recommendations but that process was tainted by the interjection of SJ Gas. Referencing correspondence between SJ Gas and the Commission’s counselor asking about the veracity of a statement he had made, Mr. Wolfe said he wanted his comments reviewed by staff, not by the applicant. Mr. Wolfe said the recusal process for Ed Lloyd (at the time of the vote on the SJ Gas application) had been reviewed by the New York Times and emails indicated that the Governor’s Authorities Unit had been involved in near real time. He said decisions are being made not by the Commission but by Trenton.

3) Climate Change – Head in the sand posture continues

Chairman Lohbauer pulled me aside before the meeting began to talk – he apologized for the fact that the Commission did not provide a response to my March 13, 2015 request for the Commission to begin addressing cliamnte change. He said he assumed that Director Wittenberg has replied.

I repeated that request during Friday’s P&I meeting, noting that the Commission was diverting scarce staff resources and time to promote economic development projects instead of focusing on the most critical threat facing the Pinelands resources and that their own science had already documented impacts from climate change.

I also noted that the CMP already included energy efficiency standards and comprehensive regulations that discouraged solar installations, so energy and climate issues were already within the scope of the CMP and the policy was bizarre situation: strict regulations to discourage solar, while no regulation of climate and staff promote fossil infrastructure like the SJG pipeline.

Director Wittenberg responded that she would provide a written reply soon.

4) Black Run Watershed – Forest preservation or development scheme?

Staff made a presentation on the Black Run watershed, in portions of Evesham and undisturbed and preserved forested lands in  Medford.

The plan was designed to reflect a 2006 transfer of development plan developed by Medford and Evesham.

The plan involves protection of high water quality by re-designation of 4,000 acres of undisturbed forested lands from rural development area to Forest Area. The plan would reduce allowable development density from 1 unit per 3.2 acres to 1 unit per 25 acres (for a total maximum of just 70 units), and expand the boundaries of thousands of acres permanently preserved ecologically signifiant lands.

If that sounds too good to be true, you are right.

Staff found that

• the current rural development designation “does not reflect the ecological value of the area”
• the current rural development designation “continues to create unrealistic development expectations“
• a Forest Area resignation would reflect the current CMP standards for Forest Area

Despite those findings, and in a complete contradiction to the above findings, staff also found that Forest Area re-designation would result in:

significant, uncompensated loss of property-owner’s value

How can the reduction of development potential be “significant” if the site has significant environmental and regulatory constraints to development at the allowable RDA density of 3.2 units per acre?

Why is staff’s recommendation so heavily influenced by greatly exaggerated diminution in development potential and property value?

Based what appears to be primarily on this “significant uncompensated loss of property-owner’s value”, the plan option recommended by staff would transfer the development density reduced in the Forest Area to a 175 acre parcel o the Evesham border with Voorhees Township. That parcel is currently zoned for 55 units – the new density transfer would allow 325 units.

Very bad deal – if the development potential of the current forested land is severely contained and is a maximum of 70 units, then there is no way 325 new units is a good plan.

Plus, the proposed planning option #3 would violate the current CMP standards regarding wastewater management.

Why is staff recommending options that violate the current CMP?

As Commissioner Jackson said:

If we keep straying from it [the CMP] we’re going to kill it. 

Commissioner Ashmum raised concerns that the staff presentation lacked the full history of the Medform Evesham Plan and a discussion of all the data, objectives, and programs that plan was based on.

Other Commissioners agreed and the staff recommendations thankfully were tabled for reconsideration at the new P&I meeting.

This is something to keep an eye on.

5) New Agricultural “Pilot” – Expanded economic development opportunities

The Commission created a new Agriculture Committee and its first task will be to consider how to respond to legislative threats, led by Senator Lesniak an Assembly Democrat Andrzejczak (D-Cape May) – the same District 1 of SJG pipeline champions Senator Van Drew and Assebmlyman Fiocchi adn new Commissioner Barr.

The issue arose out of the Tuckahoe sod farm soccer tournament controversy.

Another political concession by the Commission that undermines the CMP.

As Commissioner Jackson said:

If we keep straying from it [the CMP] we’re going to kill it.