Two opposition groups are calling a public meeting on 7 p.m. Sept. 15 in Pennington to discuss efforts in the next step of the process
PENNINGTON - Opponents of the proposed $1.2 billion PennEast pipeline are gearing up for the next stage of their fight against the bi-state natural gas conduit, planning a meeting later this month to coincide with the pipeline's anticipated formal federal application.
Two groups -- Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association and Hopewell Township Citizens Against the PennEast Pipeline - are calling a public meeting at 7 p.m. Sept. 15 at the Watershed Center for Environmental Advocacy, Science, and Education at Stony Brook Millstone Watershed Association, 31 Titus Mill Road in Pennington.
Two speakers from the watershed association and one from the West Amwell Citizens Against the Pipeline are expected to discuss the federal pipeline approval process and how residents can formally object.
"Citizens need to know that PennEast can be stopped but it will continue to take their help," said Patty Cronheim of the Hopewell group. "To date, our efforts are having an impressive impact and only 30 percent of the proposed pipeline route has been surveyed. We urge people to come out to the forum and hear about the important next steps to stop the pipeline."
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Patricia Kornick, spokeswoman for PennEast, on Tuesday said the company is on track to file its formal application with federal authorities in mid-September.
PennEast, a consortium of natural gas companies that includes all four New Jersey gas providers, wants to build a 110-mile, 36-inch pipeline stretching from Northeastern Pennsylvania to Hopewell Township.
If approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee, the pipeline would begin construction in late 2017 and begin operation in early 2018, Kornick has said.
Opposition in New Jersey is unanimous. Every municipality that the proposed pipeline intends to traverse has passed resolutions against it.
Mercer County booted the company from its public lands earlier this year, followed by the N.J. Conservation Foundation and Hopewell Township.
The state Department of Environmental Protection in July said it lacked sufficient information to evaluate which permits PennEast would need because only about 30 percent of potentially affected properties had been surveyed by the company, a figure touted by the pipeline's detractors.
But Kornick has said the DEP's letter was just part of the process, and one that provided a provides a clear, constructive roadmap'' for the company.
Keith Brown may be reached at kbrown@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KBrownTrenton. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.