Write Governor Christie and ask him to defend NJ by opposing the PennEast Pipeline

The Honorable Chris Christie
Governor of New Jersey
Office of the Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625
http://nj.gov/governor/contact/

WRITE THE DEP: sample letter to send: DEP Citizen letter

Legislator Contact Information at the Federal Level – CALLING IS ALWAYS GREAT!

• Congressman Leonard Lance- District 7 (All of Hunterdon, Parts of Morris, Somerset, Essex, Union and Warrant counties) (R) (House Energy/Commerce Committee) DC: 113 Cannon HOB, Washington, DC 20515; DC Ph: (202) 225-5361, NJ: 361 Route 31 (Unit 1400), Flemington, NJ 08822, NJ Ph: (908) 788-6900; www.lance.house.gov
• S. Senator Robert Menendez – Statewide representative (D) 528 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510-3002 DC Phone (Ph): (202)224-4744, NJ Ph: (973)645-3030; www.menendez.senate.gov
•S. Senator Cory Booker-statewide representative (D) 141 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510-3003, DC Ph: (202) 224-3224, NJ Ph: (973) 639-8700; www.booker.senate.gov
• Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman – District 12 (Parts of Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset, and Union counties). Contact US Representative Coleman at: https://watsoncoleman.house.gov/contact.

Washington, DC Office
126 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-5801 Fax: (202) 225-6025

Ewing Office
850 Bear Tavern Road
Suite 201
Ewing, NJ 08628

Legislative Contact Information at the State Level:

District 15
• Senator Shirley Turner (D) Parkway Corporate Center, 1230 Parkway Ave., Suite 103, Ewing, NJ 08628, Ph: (609) 323-7239; EM: SenTurner@njleg.org
*Assemblywoman LIz Muoio (D) 144 West State St., Trenton, NJ 08608, Ph: (609) 571-9638 aswmuoio@njleg.org
•Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D) AsmGusciora@njleg.org

FOR OUR HUNTERDON COUNTY FRIENDS: District 16
• Senator Christopher “Kip” Bateman (R) (Energy/Environment Committee) 36 East Main St. Somerville, NJ 08876, Ph: (908) 526-3600, Email (EM): SenBateman@njleg.org
•Assemblyman Jack M. Ciattarelli (R) Division St., Suite 200, Somerville, NJ 08876, Ph: (908) 450-7064, EM: AsmCiattarelli@njleg.org
•Assemblywoman Donna Simon (R) 57 Main Street, Flemington, NJ 08822, Ph: (908) 968-3304, EM: AswSimon@njleg.org

 Write to the Delaware RIver Basin Commission – Petition them to exercise their jurisdiction over the PennEast Pipeline Project which would likely go through parks and recreation areas and Special Protection Waters in their comprehensive plan. Voice your concerns!

Pamela Bush, Commission Secretary
Delaware RIver Basin Commission
P.O. Box 7360
West Trenton, New Jersey 08628
Delaware River Basin Commission

SAMPLE LETTER and Guidelines:

It is important that our state and federal representatives understand our concerns and our strong opposition to this pipeline.  They will play an instrumental role in representing our community.  It is important that they hear from large numbers of citizens as we move forward.

As you write, email or call your representative:

• Identify yourself, your residence and your status (impacted homeowner, business, concerned community resident, etc.)
• Clearly state your opposition to the PennEast Pipeline and state your reasons. Customize one or more of the Talking Points to reflect your views and experience.
• Specifically ASK your representative to oppose the PennEast Pipeline project and ask him/her to respond to you with their position on this issue.
• One way a representative could theoretically weigh in on this process is to file as an Intervenor with FERC on the PennEast project. The lawmaker could then state his opposition in writing to FERC as the representative of our district. Ask him/her to do so.
• Thank the representative for their consideration.
• Be sure to leave contact information for your representatives or their staff to reach out to you with follow-up information.  Check in with them as developments occur.

SAMPLE LETTER FORMAT:

Date

Congressman OR Assemblyman OR Assemblywoman

Address

Re: My opposition to the PennEast Pipeline

Dear ______:

I am a concerned citizen impacted by the proposed PennEast Pipeline project and I am writing to urge you to represent me and my community in opposition to this project. I live at (your address) in your district.

I am strongly opposed to this project because:

(Select one or more of the Talking Points below and ADD your personal experiences, information of the impact of the pipeline on you/your community and your concerns. It is very important that you personalize your letter to have the most impact on your representative.)

As my representative, I strongly urge you to take action to stop the PennEast Pipeline! Pleasecontact me at (here list your telephone if you are comfortable with a phone call, your email or your address) to keep me informed about what you are doing to protect me and my community.

Thank you for your consideration and your dedication to my community (list name).

Sincerely,

Name, Address and contact information you wish to share.

TALKING POINTS:

• THE PENNEAST PIPELINE ROUTE CUTS THROUGH PRESERVED FARMLAND IMPAIRING THE LIVELIHOODS OF LOCAL FARMERS!
• The PennEast pipelne errodes and weakens NJ’s Open Space and Farmland Preservation laws.
  
• THE PENNEAST PIPELINE ROUTE TARGETS CONSERVED LAND AND SEEKS TO TRUMP LOCAL AND STATE INVESTMENTS IN OPEN SPACE PRESERVATION.
• PENNEAST’S PROMISE OF JOBS IN NJ SHOULD BE QUESTIONED AS THESE JOBS ARE TEMPORARY IN NATURE AND THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT NJ CITIZENS WILL BE HIRED.
  
• THE PENNEAST PIPELINE WILL RAVAGE OUR WOODLANDS, WATERWAYS AND GREEN SPACES LEAVING A VISUAL SCAR ACROSS ONE OF THE REMAINING PRISTINE LANDSCAPES IN OUR DENSELY POPULATED STATE.
• PIPELINE PROJECTS ARE MORE THAN UNDERGROUND PIPE, THEY INCLUDE INFRASTRUCTURE WHICH MAY BE PLACED UPON YOUR LAND IMPEDING YOUR ACCESS AND USE OF YOUR OWN LAND.
• PIPELINES RELEASE TOXINS INTO THE ENVIRONMENT THAT CAN IMPACT THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF LOCAL CITIZENS.
• PROPERTY VALUES NEAR THE PIPELINE AND CORRESPONDINGLY WITHIN THE COMMUNITY OFTEN DECREASE DESPITE LIFETIME INVESTMENTS AND HOMESTEAD IMPROVEMENTS BY LOCAL CITIZENS.
• ALTHOUGH CURRENTLY IN THE PRE-FILING STAGE OF THE FERC APPROVAL PROCESS, AGENTS OF PENNEAST ARE ALREADY ADVISING CITIZENS OF POTENTIAL EMINENT DOMAIN PROCEEDINGS WHICH, IF SUCCESSFUL, COULD LIMIT HOMEOWNERS ACCESS AND USE OF THEIR OWN PROPERTY – SO MUCH FOR “PARTNERSHIP” AND GOOD FAITH.
• PIPELINES EXPLODE! Despite assertions by pipeline companies about the safety of pipelines, they can and do explode with catastrophic consequences. PennEast has already announced its intention to increase the size of the pipe to be used in its project from a 30” to a “36 pipe in order to increase the amount of gas (and its profits) that will travel through our town.  In New Jersey, pipeline explosions in Edison and last year in Ewing have led to the loss of life, homes, businesses and peace of mind. In 2011, a UGI Utilities Inc. -operated pipeline in Allentown, PA exploded in killing five local residents and destroying  47 homes/businesses. Local residents will be put in harm’s way by the mere location of their homes and businesses within the “kill zone” if a pipeline explodes.  This is unacceptable!“All of these underground pipelines are potential bombs.” Jim Hall, former Chair, National Transportation Safety Board