The Fanwood Borough Council recently passed a resolution pledging just under $5,000 to join a legal defense fund set up to fight the Pilgrim Pipeline, a pair of parallel pipelines that would carry crude oil 178 miles over land from Albany, NY, and Linden, NJ, and refined product back. The pipeline would run directly through Fanwood along the existing PSE&G right-of-way, which runs through residential areas and directly adjacent to the Fanwood Nature Center.
Eleven other municipalities in the path or vicinity of the pipeline, including Scotch Plains, have also joined the defense fund, called the Municipal Pipeline Group. Other communities have passed resolutions simply opposing the pipeline. Pilgrim Holdings, LLC, which proposes to build the project, says on its website, “Transporting petroleum products via the Pilgrim Pipeline is far more environmentally friendly than relying on trucks or fleets of traditional barges.” But environmental groups warn of catastrophic consequences including groundwater and soil contamination should the pipeline leak or be otherwise compromised. Residents living near the pipeline have opposed it almost unanimously and the Fanwood Borough Council stands with them.
