Superstorm Sandy and False Claims about Creating Flooding Hazards Upstream
No history of this remediation would be complete without a discussion of Superstorm Sandy. Before Sandy, the flood zones were delineated based on past data.
Sandy changed everything. It was a direct hit. The storm surge from the ocean that came up from the Arthur Kill just a few hundred feet away hit the eastern berms of the site and overtopped them in some areas. Much of the site stayed dry as it is above the flood elevation (even from the direct hit of such a powerful storm), but Impounds One and Three were mostly submerged for a few hours, as was half of Impound Two.
The waves deposited tons of debris and trash on the side of the site facing Staten Island.
Similar wave action from the Arthur Kill pushed the water inland, cresting on the NJ Turnpike and leaving debris strewn on the shoulder and median. This picture was taken adjacent to the site at 2pm on Oct 30th, a few hours after Sandy passed by. The water receded when the tide went out; leaving only the debris in its wake and a reminder what tidal flooding will do to the unprotected land along the Kill. This is why the sludge must be covered.
Advisory base flood elevations issued in January 2013 raised the flood elevation from 7 feet to 13-15 feet for the tidal storm surge and wave action. This was a huge increase. Note: the tidal flooded areas were no longer flooded hours after Sandy hit. When the tide goes out, these areas drain immediately.
As a result of the high tides, storm surge and wave action, berms facing the Kill were damaged in two places. Tides and storm surge, not rain, submerged the tank farms to the south and the salvage yard to the west for a number of hours until the surge receded. This had nothing to do with upstream floodwaters. To see a video that describes an example how Storm Surge works, click here.
The site is in a tidal area where the elevation of floodwaters is controlled by the ocean. Floodwaters from upstream sources do not cause the impoundments to be overtopped. Tides do. The site is already filled with sludge and the surrounding berms are high enough to protect it from riverine flooding. As an example, the flooding from Irene that devastated upstream communities did virtually no damage at this location besides erosion from rain that landed on the property.
Within three months after Sandy, an advisory flood map was issued to reflect the tidal dangers. The team amended its site plans to show the new flood delineations. A few months later, FEMA readjusted the Advisory Base Flood Elevations back down again and eliminated the wave action hazard, reducing the Base Flood Elevation to 12 feet, however to be conservative and put these dangers in the rear view mirror, the team left the design based on the higher Advisory Base Flood Elevations and zones.
The primary objective of the remediation is to cap the sludge preventing, among other things, the sludge from being washed into the River by erosion and such tidal events and surrounding wetlands downstream in Carteret and Union County. This will be accomplished so that pollution from overtopping and washout cannot occur again.
Upstream from the impoundments site, there is a natural restriction of the Rahway where the NJ Turnpike crosses it. Above this point, tidal effects are greatly diminished and flooding is controlled by upstream flow. Below this point, tidal effects control river flow and the extent of flooding. For example, following Hurricane Irene flooding from inland rainwater and runoff continued upstream for weeks. However in the tidal zone, the site had drained and was not restricting any downstream flow. The latest preliminary FEMA maps show this, and the pinch point at the turnpike is obvious.
This is the map for Middlesex County. FEMA is still developing maps for the land across the river in Union County. However, the maps will show the same type of risk from tidal flooding in Union County stretching from Tremley Point to Elizabethport. This is a huge tidally influenced basin with the New Jersey Turnpike effectively acting like a seawall from the east and a tide gate from the west.
As the maps have consistently shown, the only way water upstream can connect with water downstream is through the existing floodways and drainage features under the turnpike. This reduces the potential for tidal flooding upstream, but conversely increases fluvial (stormwater runoff and drainage) flooding upstream by limiting the flow out to the tidal zones.
Nothing in the floodway will be changed, filled or impacted as a result of this project. Since the floodway will not be impacted, filling in the tidal zone - especially in areas already filled such as the old American Cyanamid impoundments - will have no effect on upstream fluvial flow. This was confirmed and reconfirmed over and over by the State's leading flood control experts.
Several objectors with an economic interest in stopping the remediation have tried to confuse the public on issues such as this (flooding) by incorrectly interchanging technical terms, such as:
- Floodways vs. floodplains
- Tidal floodplains vs. fluvial floodplains
- Wetlands vs. wetland transition areas, and
- Calling areas already filled with 12 feet of cyanide contaminated sludge a "marsh."
Such "analysis" is simple fear-mongering, or worse; an attempt to shift blame of upstream flooding onto the backs of towns such as Carteret who need to clean up dangerous industrial abscesses and rehabilitate their shoreline. Thankfully, the experts are not so easily fooled.
Interview of Larry Ragonese, DEP, by Jim Gearhart, WKXW Radio 101.5 FM
Transcript of Ragonese Interview
Despite efforts by the experts, the misinformation continued, however at this point the detractor’s credibility is simply being diminished by pursuing their rhetoric. From DEP's experts and from our perspective, it has been addressed and discredited as self-serving.
One of the most reckless claims they have made has to do with flood water displacement. Remember, the site is already filled with 8 to 14' of sludge and other materials to levels from 3' (just above Spring High Tide at the lowest) to approximately 12 to 14' above sea level throughout the center of the site (at the highest). The existing grades running from the site to the Turnpike are depicted in brown in the drawing below.
To scare people, the detractors have gone so far as to claim that the project would displace 800,000,000 gallons of flood water capacity. This is either fuzzy math and mindless wordplay or an outright lie.
DEP's experts referred to such claims as irresponsible scare tactics. 800,000,000 gallons would fill the site up to an elevation approaching 40' above sea level. That's more than 25' above the New Jersey Turnpike. What hysteria or financial reason is driving them to make this kind of thing up?
Letter from Mayor Gerbounka / Linden to Rep. Payne regarding false flood claim
The people who live in Carteret and other surge prone areas have both the right and obligation to protect their property from catastrophic events, including protecting multi-million ton sludge piles exposed to surges from being washed into the adjacent waterways and surrounding environment.
To see another video produced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that describes the devastating effects of hurricane storm surge, “from our seas to our shores,” click here.
This picture shows the path the storm surge took - it was channeled directly up the Rahway to hit the site head on. (This picture taken from top of 14' berm surrounding Impound 4 - shows Fresh Kills Landfill in the background).
We feel for the communities upstream but this project will not affect their flooding issues.