Quarry plan has more than one problem

So what’s going on at the old Limecrest Quarry in Sparta? Answer: More than meets the eye. The current uproar is the proposal by Riverbank to construct a hydro-electric plant that will produce less energy than it uses, but promises to be a financial gift to the town of Sparta. The concerns from Andover residents are two-fold: the expansion of current electric rights-of-way that would include purchase of some homes for demolition (lucky for these few) and leave the remaining neighborhood split, scarred, exposed to health problems attendant to high voltage structures, and containing homes that are now devalued and hard to sell; secondly, the disruption and possible contamination of the single most important watershed in the area. The first of these concerns will be easily removed if the transmission lines connecting the Riverbank operation to the electric grid take the alternate route through railroad lines and empty conduits built for just this purpose. This proposal is very active. However, the watershed concern is a knottier problem, mainly because the problem is not exactly what it seems. Sparta Council went to great lengths to clarify the particulars of the purchase of the Limecrest Quarry property. The purchase did not interfere in any way with the lease held by past and present quarry operators. With that lease is a water allocation permit from NJ Department of Environmental Protection allowing substantial withdrawals from the quarry property. The present owner of that lease, Mr. Mulvihill, was hoping to sublet to Riverbank, and thereby be the recipient of all fees and royalties due the owner of the lease. By some mechanism, Sparta is proposed to be the recipient of more than half of this income and Mr. Mulvihill the rest. The important question is: Who actually owns the lease and the water allocation permit? Riverbank is proposing a closed system, but in order to reserve the water needed, they need to build a much deeper reservoir. This will surely siphon off ground water from the immediate vicinity, possibly leaving wells in the area at risk? Should Riverbank be applying for their own water allocation permit? How much control does Sparta actually have? What is being overshadowed in this controversy is the permits Mr. Mulvihill has obtained that have nothing to do with Riverbank; it has everything to do with the watershed that serves Andover, Lafayette and Sparta. His Crystal Springs project needs both sewage treatment and water supply. Apparently he has approvals for a tertiary treatment plant that will discharge the treated liquids to an abandoned quarry (not Limecrest) in Sparta. He is proposing to pump water from the Limecrest quarry to a potable water treatment facility at Crystal Springs. He apparently can do this because he has 34 years and two months left on his water allocation permit. Is this taking clean water from one aquifer to serve another and then returning it in a less than clean state? Should we, the NJDEP and the Highlands Commission tolerate this? As for Riverbank: it is a useless project. It is not green. It does not add electricity to the grid. It is not necessary. It may not be profitable as it bets on off-peak energy being forever cheap. It was simply courted by Mr. Mulvihill so he could profit from it and from the questionable use of water from the Paulinskill aquifer. In addition, Riverbank entities have a history of “flipping” what they call “green” energy projects for a handsome profit once the project is shovel ready. Riverbank is not in the energy business; but in a financial one. Do not be swayed by people who take on the mantle of environmentalist to gain approval for their own agendas that have nothing to do with protecting natural resources, but have everything to do with monetary profit. Carla Kostelnik Andover Township