Mayors, environmentalists to Gov. Phil Murphy: Bolster NJ’s flood regulations

MANVILLE – Mayor Richard Onderko grew up on North Second Avenue and a half century ago, he had to be rescued by boat from the floodwaters from Tropical Storm Doria.

On Wednesday he stood on the same street a block from the Raritan River before a house ruined by a natural gas explosion during the flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida a year ago, and implored Gov. Phil Murphy to approve the state Department of Environmental Protection's proposed rules to upgrade and update the state's flood hazard and stormwater management regulations.

"We need a sense of urgency to help our residents get out of harm's way," he said. "Our residents deserve better."

And the mayor repeated the plea he has been making on the first anniversary of the flood that inundated the borough last year, just as the floods from Hurricane Irene in 2011, Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and Doria in 1971 brought the town to the brink of survival

"Please help Manville," Onderko said, adding the borough, bordered by the Raritan and Millstone rivers, is "ground zero" for floods caused not only by excessive rains but runoff from communities as far away as Mercer County.

The mayor, other elected officials and environmentalists gathered Wednesday to deliver the message that the governor should implement the DEP's proposed rules as soon as possible.

The state has ignored the warnings from the previous floods, said Jim Waltman, executive director of The Watershed Institute.

He likened it to someone hitting the snooze button after the wake-up alarm sounds.

"It's time to stop hitting the snooze button," he said.

The current DEP flood hazard and stormwater management rules are based on 1999 data, he said.

"Data for the flood zones are decades out of date," Waltman said.

But with the state experiencing more and more effects of climate change, including increases in the amount and severity of rainfall, the DEP knew the rules had to be revised, Waltman said.

Murphy realized it as well and by executive order, directed the DEP in 2020 to take action and develop NJ PACT (Protecting Against Climate threats.) The DEP released its draft of the "bold" new rules in May, but Murphy has yet to approve them, Waltman said.

But builders "squawked," Waltman said, and at a press conference last week, Murphy explained the delay in the formal adoption of the new rules, saying "it's complicated."

"It's not complicated, governor," Waltman said.

Onderko also said the new rules were necessary because they might act as a speed bump in the approval of development and slow down the rate of new construction.

Onderko said the new rules should require new developments to retain runoff sites for 36 hours before releasing it.

Central Jersey environmentalists also urged Murphy to take quick action on the new rules.

"Let's get off the dime and get it done," said Bill Kibler, director of policy for the Raritan Headwaters Association.

Kibler noted that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has also recognized the need to update flood maps because of climate change and its future effects.

"Planning is about looking ahead," he said.

"It's not 1999 anymore," said Doug O'Malley, executive director of Environment New Jersey, adding that state needs "a new playbook."

Floods are happening "far too often," O'Malley said. The DEP has completed the research and drafted the rules so "it's time to take them off the shelf," he said.

Princeton Councilman David Cohen said the data supporting the current DEP regulations are "woefully out of date" and the "rules are only as good as the data."

Cranbury Mayor Barbara Rogers, whose town suffered severe damage in the downpours from Tropical Storm Henri a week before Ida, said the new rules are necessary because "water does not know town, county or state boundaries" and "we need additional tools to protect our citizens."

In a prepared statement Cranford Mayor Kathleen Miller Prunty also urged Murphy to take action.

"DEP was right in May to announce expediting these long-promised and long-delayed flood hazard and stormwater rules," she stated. "They can't be implemented fast enough before the next Ida."

And Prunty warned that because of climate change, "More is coming. It's not if. It is when."

Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com

Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ flood regulations should be bolstered: environmentalists to Murphy