NETCONG (12/22/05) – Three weeks ago when outraged freeholders, legislators and local officials gathered here to protest a Department of Environmental Protection order which would allow it to take over nearly all of the state’s 193 sewerage authorities and designated wastewater management planning areas, someone said it was just a bluff….that the DEP was doing this just to focus attention on the fact that few systems are in compliance with state regulations and to move the matter to a front burner.

Well, the guy was right. Today the DEP announced it was backing off entirely on its order because the matter was much more complicated than anticipated and that many large scale developments where millions of dollars already had been spent would have to have been scrapped.

When the officials were meeting the DEP had set a date for compliance of December 17 but as they were meeting Acting Governor Cody had interceded canceling the December 17 deadline and postponing the deadline until May 25.

The DEP did have support among environmental groups and some towns that are facing unwanted large scale developments, however, even Commissioner Bradley Campbell admitted that the plan was too ambitious to be undertaken in the waning days of the current administration.

He added however, that he hoped to submit a revised plan in January for consideration by the new governor, Jon Corzine and the officials in the sewer authorities get the message that the state will not continue to be lax in the enforcement of regulations in this area.