Published in the Asbury Park Press
By TODD B. BATES
ENVIRONMENTAL WRITER
AFTER MORE than two decades of state and federal clean water efforts, rising population, sprawling development and pollution seriously threaten New Jersey's waterways and drinking water, activists and experts say.
And while state officials say water supplies and quality have improved in recent decades, a leading activist warned that any clean-water gains will be temporary if trends continue.
"If you look at the total spectrum of surface water quality in the state, we're not any better and we're getting worse," said David Pringle of the New Jersey Environmental Federation. He and other activists accused state officials of falling short in addressing water issues.
Robert Tudor, assistant commissioner for environmental planning and science in the state Department of Environmental Protection, took issue with the critics. He noted that more marine waters are open to shellfish harvesting, including part of the Navesink River, and ocean swimming bans are down, among other gains. But Tudor added that New Jersey still has "a long way to go" to reach federal clean-water goals of making all waters fishable and swimmable.
As the nation marks the 29th anniversary of Earth Day today, the Garden State is at a crossroads in its struggle to balance land uses, protect vast surface and ground water supplies and provide enough clean water in the coming decades. On the threshold of the 21st century, the state needs to address:
· Population growth that is prompting water deficits -- the use of more water than can be regenerated naturally -- in northern Ocean County and other areas, especially during droughts;
· Sprawling development, which paves over aquifer recharge areas, where rainfall seeps into the ground and replenishes underground supplies, and increases polluted runoff into streams, rivers and coastal waters;
· The need to restore impaired portions of 19 of the 20 watershed management areas in New Jersey, including Monmouth and Ocean counties, and address the myriad sources of pollution within them.
Under pressure
According to projections in the interim state master plan, New Jersey's population is expected to rise from an estimated 8.1 million on July 1, 1998, to about 9 million in 2020.
Monmouth County's estimated population of 603,434 in July is projected to increase to about 700,000 in 2020. Ocean County's population is expected to mushroom from an estimated 489,819 to about 700,000 in 2020.
More people mean more development, greater demand for water and increased storm water runoff.
Officials said Monmouth County is expected to have enough water through 2040 because of the vast supply in the Manasquan Reservoir. Slightly more than half the reservoir's safe yield of 30 million gallons a day is being tapped.
Although the 4-billion-gallon reservoir was designed in the 1980s to serve Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, a Monmouth official hopes that the reservoir water stays in Monmouth.
"The diversion of water out of any watershed is of concern," said K. Thomas Kellers, principal environmental planner for the Monmouth County Planning Board.
DEP officials believe that the Manasquan Reservoir can meet demand in both Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, said Shing-Fu Hsueh, who heads the DEP's water supply administration.
In Ocean County, the Toms River and Metedeconk River watersheds, where populations may nearly double by 2040, face significant water supply issues, according to the 1996 New Jersey Statewide Water Supply Plan.
Demand for water in the Metedeconk watershed, which covers 123 square miles in Ocean and Monmouth counties, exceeded sustainable supplies by 4 million gallons a day in 1990, the DEP plan says. The deficit may reach 14 million gallons daily by 2040.
The deficit in the Toms River watershed, which covers 209 square miles in Ocean and Monmouth counties, was 16 million gallons a day in 1990 and may rise to 40 million gallons a day by 2040.
DEP officials are discussing whether to issue five- or 10-year water allocation permits in northern Ocean to help "encourage the development of a water supply plan," said Robert Kecskes, DEP section chief for water supply planning.
To help meet water demand, the Brick Municipal Utilities Authority plans to build a 1-billion gallon reservoir on a former sand and gravel mine that straddles Brick and Wall. The reservoir, which would supply water to Brick, Point Pleasant, Point Pleasant Beach and possibly Wall, is expected to be operational by 2002. It would provide 18 million to 20 million gallons of water per day.
The development problem
Meanwhile, officials and activists alike stress the importance of land-use planning to protect water supplies.
"You have to look at more than just water because no matter what you're trying to do, if you don't have a good land-use plan statewide, we still are going to have a lot of problems," Hsueh said.
With portions of 19 watershed management areas in need of restoration, the DEP has begun efforts to protect and enhance surface and ground water supplies and reduce pollution in watersheds. Watersheds are large areas where water drains into a single river or water body.
The DEP wants officials, business people, environmental groups and citizens to develop plans for 20 watersheds statewide.
Each watershed has many contaminated sites and countless small sources of pollution, known as nonpoint sources of pollution, that threaten surface and ground water quality. Nonpoint pollution includes lawn pesticides and fertilizers, pet waste, boat sewage, auto drippings and leaking septic systems.
Some critics say DEP officials have talked about watershed management for years and haven't backed up their rhetoric. But Tudor said the DEP has marshaled resources in the past year, and watershed programs are under way in most of the state, including in the Barnegat Bay and Manasquan River watersheds.
Source: Asbury Park Press
Published: April 22, 1999
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