After months of discussion, the committees of Passeque County decided to reserve their judgment on a controversial project, which built a natural gas compressor station in West Milford to pump more fossils through North Jersey. fuel.

On Tuesday night, six committee members voted against the Kinder Morgan East 300 upgrade project. This work upgraded two existing Tennessee Gas Pipeline compressor stations in the western part of the county, one of which is located in Wantage, Sussex County. It will also install a new electric compressor turbine at a former quarry next to the Greenwood Lake Turnpike near the Monksville Reservoir. 

For months, regional environmentalists have been urging committee members to condemn the project with the support of some local unions because they are worried about the impact of local emissions to long-term climate change. 

However, some members with dissenting views said that this issue is not something they usually consider. Commissioner Pat Lepore said that he will leave the power of judgment to the project supervision agency with oversight and expertise, that is, officials of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission who have not yet made a final decision on the project.

When West Milford officials decided not to oppose the project earlier this year, they said they could not influence the project. Records show that the town has negotiated with pipeline officials to obtain first-aid personnel training and a one-time payment of $200,000 and other guarantees. 

Despite this, Commissioner Assad Akhter, who lost his re-election campaign earlier this month, voted for a resolution to oppose the project on ethical grounds. Acht said that for a long time, his predecessors in the government and the private sector have adopted simple methods and made wrong decisions for the environment. 

"Enough," he said. "We must take a stand somewhere." 

Terry Duffy, a resident of West Milford, recently supported the resolution by John Bartlett on the Cultivation Committee. Bartlett said he is committed to creating jobs, but would rather let the county compete for sustainable energy projects than support the expansion of fossil fuels.

"It's time to stop investing in 20th century technology," Bartlett said. 

Previously: Pasek County Commissioner postponed voting on controversial natural gas pipeline proposal

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The East 300 upgrade project aims to pump 115,000 days of natural gas daily to Westchester County, New York. According to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s recent environmental impact statement, the project has been approved by the State Highlands Commission and the Department of Environmental Protection. Apart from its contribution to climate change, it will not have a significant impact on the environment.

Pipeline officials stated that the proposed 19,000-horsepower compressor turbine in West Milford will be electrically driven and will produce almost no noise or emissions. However, the Commission’s records show that the end use may result in the production of more than 2 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gases each year. According to Kinder Morgan’s website, if approved by the committee, construction may start in 2022

David Zimmer is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news of your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account now.