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by Rich Esposito
(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association March 2000 Newsletter)
I’d like to say a word of thanks
to those members who helped out during the Atlantic City Sportsman’s Show. A special
word of thanks goes out to Mark Taylor, who again coordinated the schedule, manned the
booth on Sunday, and supervised the breaking down of the booth. I’m sure glad he’s on our side. To say
that the show was a success would be an understatement. We definitely had our presence
felt, and judging by the overwhelming response that we got from those who stopped by the
booth, all the time and effort we exert for the recreational fisherman is paying off. We
are getting to be a major force, one that has to be reckoned with in the future. Not only
did we sell a good number of High Roller Raffle Tickets, we signed up quite a few new associate members.
Speaking of the High Roller Raffle,
if your club hasn’t received any books, or if you should need more, please contact
the JCAA office and leave a message and we’ll get them out to you. Your club’s
assistance is greatly appreciated and needed to make this raffle a success, and if you
don’t already know, the prizes this year total $2,995.00
John Koegler has informed us that he
has located an attorney with experience in converting organizations like ours from C4
status to C3 status. I may not know all that this entails, but I do know that if this
conversion is successful it could mean additional grants that we could be entitled to, as
well as permitting our sponsors a little tax relief when it comes to their donations to
our many functions. Boy, does this sound like a win situation. It is the opinion of the
Board of Directors that we move forward on retaining this attorney, and we will be
discussing this matter at the next monthly meeting.
Rich Pasko has reported that once
again Resorts Hotel and Casino will sponsor our annual Fluke Tournament, which this year
will be held on Saturday, June 9th, with the drawing for the boat and the other
door prizes to be held on the following Friday, June 15th. They have agreed to the $10,000 for the first
place port prizes, as well as donating the Theatre which seats 1,300 and the Ballroom
across the hall if we have an overflow crowd. Rich also informed us that we could still
use another sponsor or two, so if you know a company that is interested, please let Rich know and
he’ll get in touch with them.
On a different note, the size limit
on Scup has been raised to 9”. What that means is that the commercials won out and
the recreational anglers again got the short end of the stick. Tom was fit to be tied at
the BOD meeting the other night over this, as he knows that this will virtually shut out
the recreational fisherman who could fish all day and not see a 9” fish. There was
some talk that studies should be done on the impact that these changes have on the people
who fish for these species, as many utilize this resource to help with their increasing
food bills.
Lastly, there was an article in the Asbury Press about a conservation zone around Sedge Islands which would prohibit motorized boat traffic within 300 feet of the shoreline there because of the effect on the nesting birds and ospreys. Tom Fote, on our behalf, sent a letter to William Vibbert, superintendent of Island Beach State Park, voicing our objection to this and I’m happy to say he replied that this only concerns Personal Watercraft (Jet Skis) and boats.We still have concerns over this conservation zone and will discuss this at our February 27 meeting. We have many important topics to vote on and discuss and your clubs participation in necessary for the JCAA to work.Make sure you club representative is in attendance.
Below is a letter JCAA is sending to EPA regarding the permit renewal for Salem Nuclear Power Plant. Some of the groups who usually join with JCAA in opposing plant operations that cause environmental damage have caved in to political pressure or frustration and are not opposing the permit renewal. Their excuse, “They’re going to get the permit anyway” just doesn’t fly. Or worse yet, some people have bought the garbage put out by PSE&G. We will have an additional article in the next newspaper. It is not too late to submit your comments if you do so immediately. Please use the letter below as a guide.
JERSEY COAST ANGLERS ASSOCIATION
Working
For Saltwater Resource & Marine Anglers
February 19, 2001
Regional Administrator
Region II, Environmental Protection Agency
290 Broadway
New York, New York 10007-1866
Re:
NJDEP permit to PSEG for operation of the Salem Nuclear Generating Station
We are happy that PSEG is doing mitigation
work, however that doesn’t increase or protect fish populations of the Delaware Bay.
In 1999, when PSEG’s permit came up for renewal, the company submitted over
150 volumes of information, data and arguments to support its case that it should be
allowed to continue to kill Delaware River fish unimpeded. To its credit, NJDEP
hired an independent expert to help them review PSEG’s materials. ESSA
Technologies’ 154 page review of PSEG’s permit application documents ongoing
problems with PSEG’s assertions and findings including bias, misleading conclusions,
data gaps, inaccuracies, and misrepresentations of their findings and damage. ESSA
found that “…the actual total biomass of fish lost to the ecosystem is at least
2.2 times greater than that listed in the Application.”(p.75). But to
it’s discredit, NJDEP is choosing to ignore their expert’s finding and is
rewarding PSEG’s misinformation with a new draft permit that allows them to continue
killing over 3 billion Delaware River fish a year and to continue a wetlands experiment
that relies on herbiciding, manipulating and burning sensitive marshlands, depriving the
Bay’s wildlife and aquatic life of the shelter and food they provide. Why does
the government limit the fishermen’s take but not Salem’s?
We agree with the Delaware Department of
Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s comments and concerns. Neither
the previous permit nor the proposed one specifies any particular measures to reduce
entrainment losses. As recommended by ESSA Technologies Ltd., PSEG should assess
in-situ mortality of impinged fish after they are discharged back into the River.
Enclosed is a copy of the New York study
which compares the estimated fish mortality per megawatt of power produced for two
existing plants with one-through cooling, against Athens with “wet” and
“dry” cooling towers. The Albany Steam Generating Station (once-through)
produced a total of 341,531 fish lost per megawatt of rated power. Roseton
Generating Station (once-through) accounted for 23,996 fish lost per megawatt while Athens
came in at only 1,642 for wet towers and 72 with dry towers. If we look at the
cumulative effects of once-through generating stations, the results are devastating!
Under the previous permit cycle initiated in
1994, NJDEP and PSEG concluded that retrofitting cooling towers at Salem would be cost
prohibitive for the environmental benefits gained. However, calculations based on
PSEG’s own figures demonstrate that it would cost only about $11 per year per
ratepayer to install cooling towers at Salem which according to PSEG would reduce
it’s fish kills by 86%.
Because Salem is clearly having an adverse
environmental impact, regardless of PSEG’s self-serving claims based on faulty
scientific studies, the Clean Water Act requires “that the location, design,
construction, and capacity of cooling water intake structures reflect the best technology
available for minimizing adverse environmental impact.” According to a study
conducted by a NJDEP hired expert in 1989 as well as experiences at other facilities;
installation of cooling towers at Salem would reduce their fish kills by 95%. And
dry cooling at Salem could reduce their fish kills by 99%. As a result, NJDEP must
issue a permit that requires technology that will reduce Salem’s fish kills by 99%.
When Salem was being built the requirements of the Clean Water Act were in place.
PSEG knew they would be subject to the legal and moral obligations to minimize
their fish kills. They knew cooling towers were an available technology. And
yet they chose not to build them. Now it is up to PSEG to shoulder the costs of that
choice, not the public, nor the fishermen and not the environment.
Sincerely,
Richard Esposito
President of JCAA
Jersey Coast Anglers Association
Enclosure: Update on EPA Water Quality
Standards Issues