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Scheme By Base Command, NJNG & Pinelands Staff To Mislead Regulators and Public

“Pretense of Military Purpose” Fabricated To Avoid Regulatory Scrutiny

The Honorable Jon T. Rymer

U.S. Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General

4800 Mark Center Drive

Alexandria, VA 22350-1500

Dear Inspector General Rymer:

I am writing to request your investigation of alleged unethical and/or improper conduct by military officials at Joint Base McGuire – Dix – Lakehurst NJ (Joint Base).

This request is based on open public testimony to the NJ Pinelands Commission on September 11, 2015 by a gentleman (hereafter “Mr. R”) regarding a proposed NJ Natural Gas Company Pipeline (NJNG).

This testimony makes deeply troubling claims based exclusively on quotes from emails between Joint Base officials and representatives of NJ Natural Gas Company (NJNG). The emails were obtained via a FOIA request.

The proposed route of that NJNG pipeline includes portions of Joint Base. The pipeline is subject to the regulatory jurisdiction of the NJ Pinelands Commission in the federally established Pinelands National Reserve.

You can view the entirety of that Pinelands Commission September 11, 2015 public hearing at the following link – the relevant testimony by Mr. R begins at time 1:19:38 and ends at 1:22:10.

Mr. R claims that he is a former NJ Natural Gas Company employee.

Mr. R claims that Joint Base officials created a “pretense of a military purpose” for the proposed NJNG pipeline and that this pretense of a military purpose was concocted to avoid regulatory scrutiny and to streamline and assure approval of the pipeline by the Pinelands Commission.

Mr. R then makes specific disturbing allegations based on the text of emails he procured via a FOIA:

As you know, [a military purpose] affords the pipeline far less regulatory scrutiny and compliance than it would receive without an actual military purpose. …

The [NJNG official] wrote [to Base officials] “We met with the Pinelands Commission last week for an initial review of our pipeline proposal and they suggested that we approach you to see if we could re-route the line through your base. They believed that this new route, along with a letter from the base that the presence of the pipeline would be a positive attribute to future base activities could streamline their process”

Mr. R testified that the Joint Base, NJNG and Pinelands Commission officials involved appear to know that there is no actual military purpose or need for the pipeline and that they are knowingly falsifying various technical aspects of that military purpose or need for the express purpose of avoiding regulatory scrutiny.

Thus, it appears that NJNG, the Pinelands Commission, and Joint Base officials concocted a scheme to mislead regulators and the public regarding a false military purpose, need for, use of and route for the proposed NJNG pipeline

Remarkably, it appears that the scheme was initiated by un-named NJ Pinelands Commission officials, who appear to have suggested it to NJNG officials who then presented it to Joint Base officials.

The testimony appears to be credible and based exclusively on emails involving NJNG and Joint Base officials.

If these claims are true, then it appears that Joint Base officials have conspired with representatives of the NJ Pinelands Commission and NJ Natural Gas Company to purposely mislead and deceive Pinelands Commission regulators and the public regarding the military purpose and need for the NJNG pipeline.

If true, they warrant a broader investigation to determine the full scope and extent of military officials’ actions with respect to the proposed NJNG pipeline.

If true, such conduct constitutes fraud and abuse and official misconduct.

If true, such behavior undermines public and Congressional trust and support for the mission and the integrity of the leadership of Joint Base.

I urge your immediate attention to this serious matter and look forward to your prompt and favorable response to this request for investigation.

Sincerely,

cc:

NJ Congressional delegation

NJ Governor Chris Christie

NJ Pinelands Commission

NJ Attorney General

Raising the Bar, Making Real Demands

The Price of Admission to the Press Conference

Dear Senator Bateman:

I noted your appearance in Hopewell this week to support the effort of PennEast pipeline opponents.

It is always good news to see a Republican supporting environmental issues.

In fact, the Democratic website Blue Jersey praises you for that and posted video of your remarks, see:

• An Environmentally Friendly Republican

Knowing of your long standing support for the environment and your willingness to buck the Governor’s Office and Senate Republican leadership and even vote to over-ride the Gov.’s veto’s – and given that you closed your remarks by saying you were going to “send a strong message to FERC and DEP” (emphasis mine) – I was curious:

• Have you sent a letter to DEP Commissioner Martin and Governor Christie that documents how pipelines always “lower existing water quality”, how NJ’s Surface Water Quality Standards prohibit a lowering of existing water quality in Category One waters, and demanding that DEP deny PennEast’s water quality certification pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act?

• Have you sent a “Dear Colleague” letter and sponsored a Senate Resolution urging your fellow legislators – in both Houses – to sign that same letter to DEP Commissioner Martin and Governor Christie demanding that DEP deny PennEast’s water quality certification pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act?

• Have you co-sponsored the Senate Resolution (SCR 180 (Lesniak, Smith) to veto DEP’s recent Flood Hazard Act rule proposal?

• If not, would you support and sign such a letter and Senate Resolution?

I recall that you supported a similar Senate Resolution opposing off shore LNG

Please advise – and let me know when the Senate Environmental Committee meets to hear your Resolution. I wouldn’t want to miss that.

PS – next time you visit Baldpate, don’t do the event at that faux Gatsby veranda, break a sweat and climb to the top – spectacular view of the river:

Mantoloking, NJ (1/17/15)

As Hurricane Joaquin approaches, I was getting frustrated by the lack of media’s substantive coverage and all lathered up to write a lengthy and detailed post about all the bad things the Christie Administration had done – climate denial and rebuild madness and all that jive –  but will abandon the wasted words.

NJ Spotlight did it a lot better and simpler in their weekly poll question:

• POLL: IF A HURRICANE HITS, WILL NEW JERSEY BE READY THIS TIME?

Of course, the right answer is (a response that had 64% when I voted this morning):

Not by any means. We’ve had a hodgepodge of responses to Sandy and are still struggling with basic issues such as home buyouts, moving people away from the coast, and rebuilding with new expectations. Meanwhile, the state has rolled back flood regulations, water-quality rules and climate-change policies. Whatever has been rebuilt has not taken into account future sea-level rise. No one should be surprised if we have another severely damaging storm in the next few years.

Not by any means, indeed!

I’d add that the “hodgepodge of responses” actually makes the underlying problems worse.

Here is the statement I send around yesterday to press corps to avoid a repetition of the Sandy non-coverage and cheerleading:

Gov. Christie has been allowed to play Russian roulette with people’s lives, homes, and BILLIONS of federal taxpayer dollars dedicated to Sandy redevelopment.

Instead of considering climate change, sea level rise and more severe coastal storms and flooding/rain events, he has promoted reconstruction in hazardous locations and rolled back coastal and flood protections.

His dunes are fake and vulnerable to erosion.

His sea walls make the problem worse.

His beach replenishment will be washed away. If not by Joquin, then the next storm.

Mark my words.

over and out.