e Strange Story Of e

Alligator Found In Neptune

By Chris Lundy

NEPTUNE – Two people who had an illegal alligator suddenly had to get rid of it, officials said. In a scheme that would have worked in an episode of a sitcom, they decided to call police and pretend they found the gator.

Good Samaritans told police about the 3-foot-long alligator in an abandoned lot, but it turns out the Samaritans were

(Alligator - See Page 9)

Whales: Continued From Page 1

Mystic Aquarium, and MERR Institute, were on hand to conduct a necropsy on the humpback whale that washed up on the North End Natural Area in Brigantine on January 12,” MMSC wrote. “The necropsy team was able to obtain the necessary samples of tissues and organs for further laboratory testing.”

The MMSC further stated that when testing these whales, results can take several months to come back before a cause of death can be determined.

Local climate groups have expressed major concerns, demanding officials to put a stop to an offshore wind project in order to properly investigate the strandings. Groups believe that pre-construction of offshore wind turbines could cause harm to marine life. Survey work emits noise and sonar and the animals can also collide with vessels.

Groups are also calling on U.S. President Biden to take immediate steps to address this environmentally harmful trend.

“The wave of dead whales is the ocean sounding the alarm,” said Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action, “and we must heed the warning.”

“These tragic multiple deaths of mostly young, endangered whales are of no apparent cause, however, the only new activity in the ocean is the unprecedented concurrent industrial activity by over 11 companies in the region’s ocean, which allows the harassment and harm of tens of thousands of marine mammals. Moreover, federal and state agencies have been recklessly fast-tracking offshore wind development projects. These three coinciding factors raise suspicions, and a responsible and reasonable response is the action plan for which we are calling,” Zipf added. Although no offshore wind turbines have been built in the state, Governor Phil Murphy is pushing several projects in order to reach his offshore electric wind generation goal of 11,000 megawatts of usage by 2040.

“Since offshore wind projects were being proposed by Governor Murphy to be built off the coast of New Jersey, I have been adamantly opposed to any activity moving forward until research disclosed the impacts these projects would have on our environment and the impacts on the fishing industry,” said Congressman Van Drew (R-2nd). “Ocean life is being put at risk as our governor and president force through their Green New Deal policies, without giving full consideration to their real-world impacts. We have seen a complete lack of transparency from New Jersey’s leaders, as well as D.C. politicians who are ramming through these projects in order to push their climate agenda.”

The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration said it has been studying what it calls “unusual mortality events” involving 174 humpback whales along the entire east coast since January 2016. Agency spokesperson Lauren Gaches said, “that period pre-dates offshore wind preparation activities in the region.”

On January 17, local environmental advocates gathered to dissipate false narratives about offshore wind farms. They also discussed other factors such as climate change, ocean warming, vessel strikes, trawling, and other manmade threats that can pose as a danger to whales. Additionally, they expressed their continued support for responsible offshore wind development in full compliance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

“Blaming offshore wind projects on whale mortality without evidence is not only irresponsible but overshadows the very real threats of climate change, plastic pollution, and unsustainable fishery management practices to these animals. There have been many mitigation techniques identified for reducing the threat of offshore wind development to whales and other wildlife. We should focus on implementing these while continuing to push for clean energy. These include specific turbine configurations and entanglement deterrents,” said Anjuli Ramos- Busot, New Jersey Director of the Sierra Club.

“You know what the greatest threat to whales is? Climate change! New Jersey has been blessed to have more whales thriving off our shores the past few years but that means we’re also cursed with more dead whales washing up on our shores. Given the climate emergency and other threats to endangered species, we can’t speculate, we must apply sound science and the precautionary principle all the time,” said Amy Goldsmith, NJ State Director of Clean Water Action. “We must advance offshore wind responsibly and quickly, and that’s what New Jersey is doing. We must investigate and apply lessons learned from these strandings too. Promoting offshore wind and saving the whales are part of a multi-tiered effort to get off dirty fossil fuels, create good jobs, and protect our precious natural resources from beautiful ocean views to the awesome wildlife beneath them.”

Plan: Continued From Page 1

According to the applicant’s attorney, Kenneth Pape, Janico Inc, also owns the adjacent building known at 88 Vanderveer Road and intends to further extend its business within the industrial park. No more than two new tenants could be added to the new building, as Janico has no need to occupy it in its entirety.

The proposed warehouse building would consist of 70,320 square feet, including 63,288 square feet of warehouse and two office elements composed of 7,000 square feet all together.

“The relief that we’re requesting is a site plan approval and the only variance relief that is required is a result of moving the parking lot suggested by the board and its professionals,” said Pape. “In all other respects, it’s fully compliant.”

Developers ask for variances if their plans don’t fit 100% with the town’s rules for the property.

Scott Kendall, who testified as a traffic expert, discussed changes made to the original plans submitted to the planning board. One of the things he found critical was that the new plans better separated passenger vehicles from the loading dock. This removed potential conflicts between cars and trucks.

“The plan as provided can accommodate truck access to the existing loading docks as well as the proposed loading docks,” Kendall testified. “In my expert opinion, this plan can operate safely and efficiently.”

Not everyone who listened to Kendall’s assertions appeared convinced that he completely addressed all of the traffic issues. Councilman Fred Gasior, who sits on the planning board, was the first to express concerns.

“I have some questions about what kind of evaluations you’ve done offsite on the roads that traveled to and from this facility,” asked Gasior. “How far out did you go and where did you read the traffic?”

Pape spoke before Kendall could give an answer, explaining the applicant’s responsibility to analyze the surrounding roadways was not part of the applicant’s burden. Planning Board attorney Ron Cucchiaro later confirmed the same legal opinion when traffic in the area seemed to become an issue of concern.

“You know that at Vanderveer and Howell Road, it’s obvious that trucks can’t make a left turn there,” Gasior said, “They’re going to have to veer to the right and go up in that direction.”

Gasior further asked if studies had been done for the intersection of Howell Road and Route 33, and was informed they were not a requirement of the application as it a permitted use.

The project is right off Howell Road and greatly concerned Jacqueline Cestero who lives close to the proposed warehouse. She said that up to 10 warehouses had been approved or proposed within a one mile area of the Vanderveer site and that this project intended to use Howell Road as an access point.

“How are we handling that Howell Road has a four ton weight limit?” asked Cestero.

Kendell said he was unaware that Howell Road had four ton weight limit, a statement subsequently disputed by Marc Parisi, a local resident. Parisi said that Kendall provided testimony in another planning board matter and acknowledged the weight limits.

After the conclusion of public comment, Pape said that he did not know if the weight restrictions on Howell Road were accurate, but indicated his client had no choice but to abide by regulations on roadways.

Cucchiaro, the board attorney, reminded the planning board members that they were dealing with a development that was considered a permitted use.

“The courts say that the governing body when identifying the permitted use is presumptively familiar with the traffic in the area, and that it understands that greater traffic will be created,” Cucchiaro explained. “What the courts go on to say is you can’t deny an application for increased traffic.” when their pipes froze, leaving Coco alone for three days and nights with temperatures reaching below freezing.

Nevertheless, planning boards have the jurisdiction to analyze the safety of ingress and ingress. Cucchiaro then asked the planning board’s engineering expert, Laura Neumann, PE, PP if she found any ingress or egress issues and she said she had none.

The application ended with preliminary site approval with the stated variance. Prior to fi nal approval, the applicant must come up with a resolution regarding the weight limits on Howell Road and provide it to Neumann.

If the board engineer fi nds the weight limits result in an impact to the ingress or egress, the applicant will be required to return to the board.

Coco will remain under the care of the MCSPCA so she can be monitored and treated. Caretakers described Coco as a gentle, loyal, and loving dog.

“We can’t fathom what this sweet dog had been feeling when she was freezing on a concrete pad for days, it must have felt like a lifetime,” said Ross Licitra, Executive Director of the MCSPCA. “This type of cruelty will not be tolerated and we will continue to prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law. We are the leaders of Humane Law Enforcement in the State of New Jersey for this reason.”

Coco’s former owners have now been charged with two counts of animal cruelty: Cruel Restraint and Failure to Provide Necessary Care.

At this time, Coco is not yet available for adoption, but the shelter encourages interested families to keep an eye on social media postings and the website. To donate towards Coco’s care, along with the thousands of other animals being cared for at the Monmouth County SPCA, visit bit.ly/3sUE2mP.

Charge s are merely accusations until proven in a court of law.

WASHINGTON, D.C. –

Tapped by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to chair the influential Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th) vowed the bicameral panel, under his leadership, will “aggressively counter the transnational repression of Xi Jinping’s brutal dictatorship and ramp up scrutiny of those who are aiding and abetting the Communist regime.”

“The CECC has been instrumental in advancing critical legislation - including two laws I coauthored, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act - to hold the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to account for its heinous atrocities,” said Smith, who has chaired 76 congressional hearings on human rights abuses in China.