West of the Garden State Parkway, off Oak Ridge Parkway, is a 1350 acre Superfund site owned now by BASF. Originally the site of a chemical company producing dyes, the plant dumped its toxic waste into the waters, including the Atlantic. As a result, persons in the area suffered skyrocketing rates of cancer due to groundwater pollution.
The State DEP negotiated settlement with BASF was excoriated by locals at a recent hearing. The settlement commits BASF to a 10-year cleanup but environmentalists say it would take 30 years to clean the site. How do we hold companies that have polluted our environment accountable? This question is one not just for Toms River but all of us.
BASF would pay only $100,000 to correct environmental damage, a paltry sum, as one person noted, compared to the cost of her child’s cancer care. And BASF would be permitted to develop 250 acres of the property. The deal was negotiated without local input. We in New Jersey need to hold the State to being more transparent. Otherwise, we’re no better than those third world dictatorships we criticize.
Prayer for the Day
Just as chickens come home to roost, we face sins of the past,
Times when companies poured their waste into our water;
But, how, O Lord, do we make up for such destruction,
How do we bring corporate greed to task?
Grant that we may find solutions to make our lives whole again,
And not ignore the pain such pollution has caused.
In the name of the One who calls us to action,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
This nightmare is not over. Had Toms River been invited to participate in your discussions, instead of ignored, we would not be here tonight. This is a David versus Goliath fight, and it’s time for the DEP to stand with David.
- Maurice Hill, Mayor of Toms River
When I sat there and I looked at that [settlement] plan … how could that be all that is there, for all that’s gone on? I hope they use this opportunity to make a stand, make a change, do something that hasn’t been done before. They have a chance to turn this around.
- Christine Girtain, local science teacher
Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods? Do you judge people fairly?
No, in your hearts you devise wrongs, your hands deal out violence on earth.
Psalm 58: 1-2