Says the township would be responsible for any resulting flooding
West Orange, NJ (Date) – A proposed 496-unit housing development to be located in the last unprotected forest on the Watchung Mountain Second Ridge is not in compliance with applicable state and local stormwater requirements, according to Sean Walsh, PE, senior project manager with Princeton Hydro, which is a leader in natural resource management, water resource engineering, geotechnical design and investigation and regulatory compliance.
Princeton Hydro reviewed West Essex Highlands, Inc.’s application for the proposed housing development and determined that it fails to meet state and local requirements. During its evaluation of the application, Princeton Hydro identified several potential miscalculations, underestimations, and a lack of consideration for key elements related to this project, including:
- Soil testing requirements
- Groundwater mounding calculations
- Impacts to wetlands
- Peak flow calculations
- Separation of sanitary infrastructure and best management practices
“Since the project has not demonstrated compliance with all three specific stormwater management requirements of the central goals of stormwater management planning as outlined in state regulations and local ordinances, in my professional opinion, the application is non-approvable,” Walsh recently told the West Orange Planning Board.
“If the application is approved as designed, the development will increase the frequency and severity of damage expected during a flood in the adjacent and downstream areas,” said Walsh.
We Care NJ, a nonprofit organization seeking to stop the development and preserve the existing forest, has filed an appeal of a stormwater permit issued by New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP) last year.
Even though NJ DEP issued the permit, Walsh noted that, “The township still has its own responsibility to review and approve the plan to make sure it meets the local ordinance. The MS-4 permit is clear that if something is wrong – it was missed in the review process – the town can be held accountable, not the DEP.”