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EARTH DAY

STUCK IN THE MUD

What happened to the rescue plan for Barnegat Bay?

ASBURY PARK PRESS FILE PHOTO

Important pillars of Gov. Chris Christies 10-point Barnegat Bay plan remain stuck in bureaucratic mud. Meanwhile, thousands of acres of developable land could be benefiting from the standards.

New Jersey is years

behind schedule in
adopting standards
of 10-point roadmap
TODD B. BATES @TODDBBATESAPP

This is how life dies in Barnegat Bay. Stormwater rushes over lawns or soil nearly as dense
as concrete. Nutrient-laced fertilizers and other
pollutants in the runoff flow into drains,
streams, rivers and, ultimately, the fragile bay.
The nutrients, including nitrogen, fuel algae
blooms that doom sea grass beds and threaten
marine life. It doesnt have to be that way.
Conservationists know that healthy, uncompacted soil key to the stressed bays long-term
health soaks up stormwater, filters pollutants
and limits filthy runoff. But with development
increasing and bay nutrient pollution possibly
rising, an important part of Gov. Chris Christies
much-heralded plan to stave off environmental
disaster remains stuck in bureaucratic mud.
The State Soil Conservation Committee in his
Department of Agriculture is years behind
schedule in adopting new standards for restoring compacted soil at construction sites an
See BAY, Page 8A

Improving soil health

Homeowners treat the symptoms of poor plant growth by
overfertilizing their landscapes. Improving soil health throughout the Barnegat Bay watershed would reduce stormwater
runoff and improve bay water quality. Here are some tips:

1.
2.

Get your soil tested at

Rutgers Cooperative
Extension of Ocean
County or another office.
Add organic material, such as free compost for Ocean County residents and
municipalities at the countys
Northern Recycling Center in
Lakewood and Southern
Recycling Center in Stafford.

3.
4.

Use mulch regularly,

avoid applying chemicals and limit water-

Why do people
often wait so long
to address known
risks and hazards?

ing.

Plant native plants,

grasses and trees. See
examples in the
Butterfly Garden, Rain Garden, Shade Garden, Sun
Garden and Wet Garden at
Jakes Branch County Park in
Beachwood.

TODD B. BATES @TODDBBATESAPP

noon to 1 p.m. Monday to learn what

Barnegat Bays health has declined in recent

decades, but the government may take several
more years to decide how to treat the patient.
By then, it may be too late to save the bay.
Decades worth of nutrient pollution is slowly
making its way into the bay through groundwater flow. And increased development is strongly
linked to increased pollution, according to scientists.
Being proactive about the (risks) that we
create and face is often expensive. Its often inconvenient, said Lee Clarke, a sociology professor at Rutgers University. For the expensive remediations, yeah, we tend to wait.
Gov. Chris Christie announced a 10-point plan
to help save Barnegat Bay in 2010. Ten scientific
studies of the bay that began in 2012 are nearing
completion. But its unclear when the state will
decide whether to declare the bay impaired, or
damaged, and form a plan to limit pollution from

you can do to protect Barnegat Bay.

See RISKS, Page 9A

SOURCE: OCEAN COUNTY SOIL CONSERVATION DISTRICT; OCEAN COUNTY

DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION; BARNEGAT BAY NATIONAL
ESTUARY PROGRAM SCIENCE AND TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

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20 YEARS LATER: OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING REVAMPED VICTIMS RIGHTS PAGE 1B

Did Christie rekindle his presidential hopes last week?

BOB JORDAN @BOBJORDANAPP

Did Gov. Chris Christie revive his moribund campaign for the White House?
New Hampshire residents who encountered Christie in recent days at a pair of town halls, a summit for
presidential candidates, a policy speech at a college,

and at meet-and-greets at a tavern, a pizzeria, a luncheonette and a shopping expo seem to think he did
just that.
He seems pretty nice, him and his wife, Kiley
Guerrier, 20, a waitress at Caesarios Pizza in Manchester, told the Asbury Park Press after Christie dropped
in Wednesday, accompanied by over a dozen reporters

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and several television news crews.

He seemed presidential. He came in the back and
talked to the employees and customers. It was definitely exciting to meet him, Guerrier said.
Reactions like that is music to the ears for members
See CHRISTIE, Page 10A