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SupportTheDeepening - Some see path to approval for deepening plan
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Some see path to approval for deepening plan |
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January 2nd, 2010 7:00pm |
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(from Daily Journal) -- Delaware appears increasingly anxious to churn out an approval for plans to deepen the Delaware River, under terms that would salvage its pride and protect states' rights to have a say on such projects.
But what some call the state's newfound eagerness to approve the dredging is raising the ire of environmental groups opposed to the project, also affects South Jersey.
Delaware's final written arguments in its federal court bid for a preliminary injunction concede the state "should have more timely denied" an Army Corps of Engineers dredging application that sat largely untouched for 5 1/2 years after a hearing officer recommended denial.
Attorneys for the state also offered assurances in a court filing last week that few real hurdles stand in the way of action on an updated proposal. They recently gave the Army Corps a day-by-day plan for getting a permit decision following rejection of an outdated plan in July.
"It is the department's position that the corps' outstanding permit issues can be timely addressed in the review of a revised, complete and up-to-date permit application," Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Collin P. O'Mara said in a recent affidavit filed with the court.
O'Mara said he would schedule a public hearing 90 days after the new permit was received, require a report and recommendation four months after that, and issue a decision 45 days later. Overall, that's an 8 1/2-month process.
In New Jersey, at the request of Gov. Jon S. Corzine, Attorney General Anne Milgram in November joined Delaware in its request to enjoin the Army Corps of Engineers from starting the dredging project and filed a separate lawsuit in Trenton. Both actions are pending in federal courts.
Since nothing has been resolved to date in either jurisdiction, New Jersey is not commenting on what it will do should Delaware reach an accord with the Army Corps of Engineers.
"Nothing has been resolved. I can't speculate on what-if," said David Wald, spokesman for the New Jersey attorney general.
Maya K. van Rossum, who directs the Delaware Riverkeeper environmental group, questioned Delaware's time estimates and said a full airing of public concerns will likely take longer.
"I really have no idea what they're thinking, making those kinds of promises," van Rossum said. "It's a public process, and a lot of people have a lot to say about this project and a lot of concerns and good points to make about why allowing this project to move forward would not be honoring the requirements of Delaware law."
The Army Corps of Engineers wants to start work early this year on deepening the river's 102-mile main shipping channel to 45 feet from its current 40-foot depth, a $300 million undertaking sponsored by the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority. It would include the river and Delaware Bay, from Cape May to north of Camden.
U.S. District Judge Sue L. Robinson ordered the Army Corps to "maintain the status quo" pending her decision on Delaware's request for a temporary and permanent injunction.
During a hearing on Dec. 8, Robinson said the state appeared to have "sat on its hands" while the corps' application gathered dust. She also questioned whether the state's delays and demands would thwart the intent of Congress, which has repeatedly approved funds for the deepening.
Delaware rejected the corps' initial application for a state underwater construction permit in July, more than five years after a hearing officer recommended it be rejected. The permit was required for a 29-mile stretch of river entirely inside Delaware, between Claymont and Artificial Island at the Salem/Hope Creek nuclear complex in New Jersey.
The corps responded in October by announcing it would proceed without a permit for the area at the heart of the Delaware permit dispute. Corps officials cited a determination it made earlier that federal law gave the agency authority to override state rights to "maintain navigation."
Dredging supporters argue ports in Philadelphia and Wilmington need to start work on a deeper channel to hold on to shippers after the Panama Canal opens to much deeper-bottomed ships in 2014.
"The sense of urgency is, you've got to get the dredging started as soon as possible in this marketplace," said Dennis Rochford, who directs the Maritime Exchange for the Delaware River and Bay. "The economy is tough, and these carriers are making decisions about whether or not they want to stay at this port, or go to another port, in the short term as well as the long term."
A new Government Accountability Office re-view of the project's costs and benefits is expected in mid-March, a GAO spokeswoman said. The same agency found in 2002 the corps overstated benefits and understated costs, leading to an overhaul of the plan. |
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