CONNERS & CONAWAY: RIVER TOWNS MUST NOT BE DREDGE DUMPING GROUND

CONNERS & CONAWAY: RIVER TOWNS MUST NOT BE DREDGE DUMPING GROUND

Emphasize Long-Standing Opposition to Dredge Proposal

(DELRAN) – Assemblymen Jack Conners and Herb Conaway, MD on Tuesday joined Gov. Jon S. Corzine and U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews in opposing a plan that would deposit dredge spoils from the Delaware River in New Jersey towns.

Conaway and Conners - who represent 17 towns in the 7th Legislative District, many situated along the Delaware River - first expressed their opposition in a June 2008 letter to the Department of Environmental Protection. They reiterated that opposition today.

“South Jersey’s riverfront is changing for the better, and now this plan threatens to reverse recent progress that has strengthened local communities and is protecting delicate open space,” said Conners (D-Pennsauken).

“Dumping potentially contaminated spills in New Jersey communities is a non-starter,” said Conaway (D-Delran). “New Jersey should not be Pennsylvania’s dumping grounds.”

The issue has reached a critical point because the Army Corps of Engineers recently announced that it plans to allow dredging without obtaining state permits. Conaway and Conners joined Corzine in denouncing this move that could have unintended consequences - both environmental and economic - on the river towns of the 7th Legislative District.

“We applaud the Governor’s support of our constituents and have pledged to assist him in any way we can,” said Conaway. The Governor announced directed the state Attorney General to prepare for legal action to prevent the dredging without a completed environmental review process.

“We are proud to join the Governor, Congressman Andrews and even Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden in opposing this dredge plan,” said Conners. “By joining forces, we hope to persuade the federal government to adjust its plans for the good of our constituents, and the entire region.”

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