Sometimes one just needs to ask a question. The small town of Roxbury, together with the State of New Jersey, for ostensibly the same reasons, brought a lawsuit to stop the plans of ICE to convert an empty warehouse, which it bought for more than twice its commercial value, into a massive dentin center.
The feds did not do an environmental impact study. Planned for 1500 detainees, there’s a huge difference between a hideous warehouse and 1500 (if not more) toilet flushes a day emptying into the already fragile environment of the Highlands.
Passed by the Town Council, hungry and hoping for fast money, the warehouse is an abomination, which destroyed more than 100 acres of pristine forest. Granted, it’s just off 46 and within shouting distance of Lake Hopatcong, but, honestly, built in 2023, it has sat empty. Great for a tax write-off but not much else.
Although the State may be most concerned about the environmental impact an additional 15000 flushes would have on the groundwater, one suspects that this small conservative and wealthy town is more concerned about visitors and other types of people. What was it Jesus said? You cannot serve both God and mammon
Prayer for the Day
Listening for the sounds of warblers and tanagers, O God,
We heard only the sounds of chain-saws and bulldozers;
Looking for hawks swooping down from the heavens, O Lord,
We only saw concrete walls pushed into place.
Save us, O Holy One, from our constant desire to have more,
For deep inside us, we know, greed takes us farther away from you.
In the name of the One who could speak to the birds,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
The Highlands Core Forest provides all of New Jersey with a multitude of natural resource values: a clean water supply that 70 percent of New Jersey enjoys; a reservoir of biodiversity, plentiful, accessible recreational options, flood moderation, air filtration, climate resilience, aesthetic and spiritual inspiration and more.
Highlands Coalition
The [Environmental Defense Fund] report notes that warehouses are not subject to the state’s Environmental Justice Law, which means they are largely unregulated and can be built with little to no environmental review or public scrutiny.
News Report WHYY
Lord, you have been our dwelling place for all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever ou had formed the earth,
From everlasting to everlasting, you are God.
Psalm 90: 1-2