As you may have heard, Governor Christie
has vetoed the Ban Fracking Waste Bill.
We are working with our water advocate partners to call for an
override vote of the veto by our NJ State Legislators.
Currently, NJ Assembly Speaker Oliver has committed to
posting the Ban Fracking Waste Bill for an override vote. So, we are contacting you to ask you to
contact both Assembly Speaker Oliver and Senate President Sweeney
in support of them posting the Ban Fracking Waste Bill for an override vote.
For your information, pasted at the end of this email is a copy of today's Food & Water
Watch Press Release calling for an override of the veto. Also pasted below is a copy of the letter dated today to Senate President Sweeney from over eighty (80) NJ organizations asking him to post the bill for an override vote.
RIGHT NOW, it is
important that they hear from as many people as possible in support of the Ban
Fracking Waste Bill. Phone calls and
emails do make a difference! You can call them at these numbers:
Senate President Sweeney:
856-251-9801
Assembly Speaker Oliver: 973-395-1166
The Ban Fracking Waste Bill is a bi-partisan bill that
passed with an overwhelming majority. New
Jersey organizations and water advocates are also
contacting the following Republican legislators who voted for the Ban Fracking
Waste Bill, and asking them to hold their votes as "yes" when the
override vote is called.
Below are the legislators that we are asking people to
contact if they are in their district and to ask for their continued support of
the Ban Fracking Waste Bill:
Senator Jennifer
Beck 732-933-1591
senbeck@njleg.org
Senator Bateman
908.526.3600 senbateman@njleg.org
Senator Singer
732.987.5669 sensinger@njleg.org
Senator Kevin
O'Toole 973 237-1360 senotoole@njleg.org
Senator Thomas
H. Kean 908 232-3673
senkean@njleg.org
Senator James
W. Holzapfel
732-840-9028 senholzapfel@njleg.org
Senator Joseph
M. Kyrillos, Jr.
732-671-3206 senkyrillos@njleg.org (Senator Kyrillos
was absent when the vote was taken, but said he would vote for it and running
for US Senate)
Senator Diane
B. Allen
609-239-2800 senallen@njleg.org
Assemblyman Brian E. Rumpf
609-693-6700 609-693-2469 asmrumpf@njleg.org
Assemblywoman DiAnne
C. Gove
609-693-6700 aswgove@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Amy
Handlin 732-787-1170 aswhandlin@njleg.org
Assemblyman Ronald
Dancer 609.758.0205 asmdancer@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande
732.866.1695 aswcasagrande@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Holly
Schepisi 201-666-0881 aswschepisi@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Declan
J. O'Scanlon
732.933.1591 asmoscanlon@njleg.org
Assemblyman Robert Clifton
732.446.3408 asmclifton@njleg.org
Assemblyman John
F. Amodeo
609-677-8266 asmamodeo@njleg.org
Here are the rules for an override:
We need 54 Assemblymembers and 27 Senators to vote to
override the Governor's veto to make this bill law.
When the bill passed, 56 Assemblymembers voted for the
bill, as did 30 Senators.
We can do this for clean safe water! Please make your phone calls or emails today!
The WATERSPIRIT Team
*********************************************************************************
For Immediate Release: Oct. 3, 2012
Contact: Seth
Gladstone- sgladstone@fwwatch.org,
718.943.8063
80+ Statewide Organizations Call on Legislature to
Override Governor's Veto of Fracking Waste Ban Bill
Urge Commitment from Senate President Sweeney
as Speaker Oliver Commits to Holding and Override
Vote
Trenton, NJ
- Activists and community leaders representing more than eighty statewide
organizations signed and delivered to Senate President Sweeney
a letter calling for a veto override of New Jersey's
fracking waste ban bill. The bill, which would make the state the first in the
nation to prohibit the discharge, disposal, treatment or storage of fracking
waste, passed both houses of the state legislature months ago with strong
bipartisan support, but was recently vetoed by Governor Christie.
The letter can be accessed here.
Assembly Speaker Oliver announced that she will schedule
an override vote in her chamber, and activists called on Senate
President Sweeney to match her action.
Analysis from the non-partisan Office of Legislative
Services confirms the constitutionality of the legislation, directly refuting
the governor's claims to the contrary. And the governor's statement that the
bill is unnecessary because New Jersey
doesn't carry the potential for fracking itself is inaccurate according to a
recent study by the US Geological Survey which identified a large natural gas
basin that stretches widely through the northern half of the state. Despite
being only partially assessed, it has already shown to hold billions of cubic
feet of gas.
Activists also pointed to a recent study from Stony
Brook University
that found the greatest risk of contamination of drinking water and
environmental pollution from fracking occurs during the wastewater disposal
process.
"The sad truth is that Governor Christie
has been bought off by the oil and gas industry, and the excuses he offers for
his veto of the Fracking Waste Ban Bill are silly," said Jim
Walsh, regional director of Food & Water
Watch, a consumer rights group. "Although the governor won't stand up and
protect residents from this danger, we are thankful that Speaker Oliver has
committed to pushing the override forward and we're hopeful that Senate
President Sweeney will match her
commitment."
"We need the Senate President and Speaker not only
to post this bill but make sure we have enough votes for an over
ride," said Jeff Tittel, Director,
NJ Sierra Club. "We need to ban
fracking waste in New Jersey if
we want to protect our rivers and our land from these harmful and toxic
chemicals. We already have enough toxic
sites and pollution in our waterways, we do not need to add anymore. New
Jersey cannot allow its water supplies to be held
captive by multi-national oil and gas companies."
Tracy Carluccio,
Deputy Director of Delaware Riverkeeper Network stated, "Every day
millions of gallons of frack waste is being produced without safe means of
disposing of it. Drillers are desperate to dispose of it so will get rid of it
any place they can. Without New Jersey standing up to protect our drinking
water and communities we will end up a dumping ground for this toxic waste
because there's nothing to prevent that from happening. This law is essential
because it prevents pollution from frack waste and doesn't allow our waterways
and already stressed infrastructure to fall prey to contamination."
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