Are the newly constructed Margate dunes saving lives & property as promised? Doesn’t look like it. Rather, the controversial beach project is creating substantial public safety and economic hazards. Will there be an injunction to stop the work?
Dune work and associated flooding caused by the beach project now extends from Federicksburg Ave. in Ventnor, all the way to the now closed, Huntington Ave. beach in Margate.
Up to two feet of standing water has made beach access much trickier, and more dangerous since Saturday, July 29. ‘Percolation’ of water within 48-36 hours has not happened.
Margate Special Meeting about DUNES.
11a. Wed, Aug. 2. OLD CITY HALL. Washington Ave.
Topic: Emergency authorization to institute possible legal action against NJ DEP – New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Army Corp of Engineers. Commissioners will discuss hiring special counsel to file injunction to stop the dunes project.
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The NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and The Army Corp say the flooding problem is temporary. In the meantime, Weeks Marine of Cranford NJ continues building the dunes and widening the beaches. The $63 million project is currently at Huntington Ave.
DID YOU KNOW? Up in Point Pleasant Beach — Jenkinson’s Pavilion recently settled a lawsuit with the state Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, agreeing to install a steel seawall instead of a dune. READ MORE
Joan and Vincent Castronuovo for Concerned Citizens of Margate and Ventnor have been in contact with Patrick Dillon, Environmental Coordinator, Atlantic County Division of Public Health, to bring to his attention the dangerous health hazards that exist in the area between the bulkhead and dunes in Margate. They will also be including the U.S Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, Office of Americans with Disabilities, ADA.org in all future correspondence regarding this urgent matter.
Vince Castronuovo and the Concerned Citizens of Margate and Ventnor sent the following email to representatives of the DEP & Army Corp of Engineers on July 31.
Dear Ms. Scott and Mr. Dixon:
In addition to the series of unanswered questions and concerns that I have addressed to the NJDEP in emails since 7/25/17, current beach conditions in Margate have led to more urgent issues that demand answers.
1. Is the NJDEP examining any connection between the dredged sand obtained by strip mining the sea floor in Absecon Inlet, which has been known to contain run off from contaminants, and the spike in Atlantic County beach closings where that sand and sludge is being deposited?
2. Is the NJDEP performing any analysis of the standing water between the bulkhead and the newly built dunes through which the public must wade for beach access? If so, how often are water samples taken, and what procedure exists to notify the public when toxic levels are reached?
3. As of 7/30/17, “No Swimming” signs have been posted in the standing water between the bulkhead and the dunes. If it is known that swimming is unsafe, must not the same warning apply for anyone subjected to walking through that dangerous liquid?
4. What repository has established to monitor the spike in health-related gastrointestinal, dermatological, allergic and systemic illnesses that are being reported by individuals exposed to the pooled water?
5. Will environmental impact studies be conducted to examine these latest discoveries?
6. How is the mat that the Army Corps of Engineers proposes to lay on the sand in the area between the bulkhead and the dunes going to prevent traversing the pooled water?
These are the most obvious questions that come to my mind after viewing conditions over the weekend, and listening to the voices of incredulous and embittered physicians, attorneys, engineers, parents and protesters in general at the impromptu gathering of 200 citizens at Delavan Avenue beach on 7/30/17.
I encourage any of the people on the cc list of this email to compile and forward additional questions to the Army Corps, the NJDEP, and U.S. District Judge Renee Bumb, who in her court decision denied the Margate Plaintiffs’ Application for a Preliminary Injunction to stop the Dunes Project, Case 1:16-cv-08198-RMB-JS Document 41 Filed 02/03/17, citing on Page 48 that “Plaintiffs have set forth fears about increased drainage and ponding problems, which, while genuinely expressed, are factually unfounded.”
Sincerely,
Vince Castronuovo
For the Concerned Citizens of Margate and Ventnor
See 6ABC Action News Coverage from JULY 30.
Sent e-mails to Whelen, Brown and Mazzeo regarding my disgust with the Margate Dune project. Jim Whelen’s Chef of Staff called me back and reminded me that Senator Whelen has been out due to illness, I asked her if she was aware dune flooding and recently formed lake. She told me her office had no knowledge, I suggested someone from her office attend the Margate Commissioner’s meeting and drive down to Margate to survey the damage. She declined and expressed no interest. She also told that only one other person has contacted their officer. Neither Brown nor Mazzeo have called or e-mailed me back. These are your elected officials. Please call or e-mail their offices if you are truly upset. It is the only way you will get their support. They obviously don’t care about Margate. Note I am year round resident and my family votes in every election.