Newark Residents Urge Gov To Stop Plans For New Power Plant As He Touts “Landmark” Environmental Justice Law

Newark residents and environmental activists are calling on Gov. Phil Murphy to delay plans by a wastewater treatment facility to build a natural gas power plant in an over-polluted corner of the city. The Passaic Valley Sewerage Commision, which serves one in six New Jersey residents and treats waste from states along the East Coast, like New York, will vote on a construction contract for the $180 million project on Thursday. 

PVSC officials say the back-up power source is necessary to mitigate against climate change and worsening storms. When Hurricane Sandy hit in 2012, the facility lost power for 72 hours and 840 million gallons of raw sewage seeped into the Passaic River and Newark Bay. 

But environmental advocates say building a new power plant is antithetical to Murphy’s promises to protect Black and brown communities from more polluting facilities. Murphy signed a landmark bill in 2020 that would empower the state to reject permits for projects like power plants or other manufacturing facilities if they have a disproportionate impact on communities already overburdened by pollution. The law’s rules are still being written so the measure won’t take effect until later this spring at the earliest. 

Environmental and civil rights groups are urging Murphy to intervene, and, at least, delay the vote this week. The governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

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