In an editorial, Jersey City Republican Party Co-chair Boris Ioffe explains why polluters should have to be held accountable locally before electeds push state legislation.
Photo courtesy of Boris Ioffe.
Every heavy rain in Jersey City brings the same unacceptable reality: flooded streets, overflowing sewers, toxic wastewater on sidewalks, and sewage backing into people’s homes.
At this point our schools might as well plan for emergency flash flood days and delayed openings as they do for snow days. Residents and taxpayers deserve better.
In 2011 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency entered into major enforcement actions and a consent decree settlement with the Jersey City Municipal Utilities Authority (JCMUA) regarding Clean Water Act violations and combined sewer system overflows, to compel long-overdue sewer system remediation.
Yet years later, many flood-prone neighborhoods in Jersey City continue to experience repeated sewer overflows, while residents receive no transparent information about the city’s repair priorities, project timelines, or measurable progress.
More pumping capacity is needed in the areas that flood most frequently, and the public deserves regular, accessible reporting on what is being fixed, when, and at what cost. When residents are being asked to endure a tax increase, it should translate into a real infrastructure investment.
Instead, we have recently observed Mayor James Solomon and local elected officials visibly champion “Make Polluters Pay” legislation, presenting themselves as leaders on environmental responsibility, without taking action on the ongoing pollution impacting our community right here and right now.
While holding polluters accountable is a worthy goal, Jersey City families are forced to contend with toxic sewage spilling onto their sidewalks and into their basements after every major rainstorm, not to mention the heavy, sickening residual fumes that remain for days after the water levels recede making it impossible to open windows.
According to the EPA, raw sewage carries bacteria, viruses, parasitic organisms, intestinal worms, and inhaled molds and fungi.
As a result, they may cause diseases ranging in severity from mild gastroenteritis to life-threatening ailments such as cholera, dysentery, infections hepatitis, and severe gastroenteritis.
Residents should not have to live with these constant environmental hazards in their own neighborhoods while their elected officials focus on generating headlines, instead of remediating pollution in Jersey City.
That is performative politics—not practical leadership.
In fact, it would be great to see our elected officials do photo ops next to raw sewer spills in our streets, as they did sporting shovels during a snowstorm, but be warned – this stench may prove too much for the delicate noses of our elected elites.
As Jersey City Republican leaders, we believe quality of life for local residents and taxpayers must come first. That is what our taxes and exorbitant utility fees pay for.
That means accelerating sewer remediation projects, installing additional pumps in flood-prone areas, ensuring immediate cleanup of hazardous sewer spills throughout the city, and providing the public with a transparent, regularly updated roadmap for sewer improvements.
It also means making sure every new development contributes meaningfully to the infrastructure it relies upon and to the community it profits from.
Recent discoveries about city administration’s support for a universal Inclusionary Zoning raises concerns that negotiations with developers will center primarily on affordable housing commitments that may ultimately be subject to interpretation, while failing to guarantee investments in sewer infrastructure.
Meanwhile, every new variance for extra height and density increases demand on an already overburdened sewer system. Growth should pay for the infrastructure needed to support it, not leave existing residents to bear the consequences.
Jersey City residents pay some of the highest property taxes in the region. They deserve functioning infrastructure, safe streets, and confidence that their government is focused first on protecting their homes and health.
The priority of our politicians should not be chasing headlines, but ensuring that the next rainstorm does not bring another wave of sewage into our communities.
Boris Ioffe
Ward F Resident
Jersey City Republican Party Co-Chair