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 January 2006: In a decision announced on August 10, a federal court judge ruled on a complaint initiated by GreenFaith and its partners that a massive dredging project by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the National Environmental Policy Act by ignoring the impacts of dredging in the middle of a Superfund site in Newark Bay. The area is laced with dioxin, one of the most dangerous compounds known. Without proper protections, dredging would spread the contamination into surrounding waterways. “The court’s decision is an ethical, first step in the right direction,” said Rev. Fletcher Harper, Executive Director of GreenFaith. “Now, the Corps needs to plan to dredge Newark Bay in a m ann er that protects human health and the marine environment.” “The court ruling sends a strong message to the Corps that it c ann ot ignore the health and safety of our waters. We all want the contaminated sediments removed, but simply plowing through a toxic waste dump won’t solve the problem,” said NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) attorney Larry Levine. The judge’s decision resulted from a January 2005 lawsuit filed in federal district court in New York City by GreenFaith, NRDC and NY/NJ Baykeeper. GreenFaith became involved following its 2003 Newark Environmental Justice Tour, where local religious leaders learned about the high pollution levels in the Bay. GreenFaith, NRDC and Baykeeper are seeking to ensure that the giant underwater dig, which is part of a 10-year, multi-billion-dollar project by the Corps and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to open the harbor to larger container ships, does not undermine the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) efforts to study and clean up Newark Bay. Singling out what she termed “disturbing” conduct by the Corps, Judge Shira Scheindlin’s ruling establishes that the Corps cannot simply ignore how its dredging may interfere with the EPA-led Superfund cleanup in Newark Bay. GreenFaith and its partners have been negotiating with the Corps since October to seek to reach a settlement that would allow dredging to continue while also protecting the Newark Bay ecosystem. Scientists have called Newark Bay one of the world’s worst dioxin-contaminated sites, with layers of polluted sediment contributing to dangerous dioxin levels in blue crabs, fish, and fish-eating birds. Dioxin levels recorded in Passaic River and Newark Bay blue crabs are believed to be the highest ever measured in aquatic animals worldwide. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has banned crabbing in and around Newark Bay because of an “extremely high” cancer risk and recommends strict limits on consumption of fish caught in the area. Research has also uncovered high dioxin levels in certain marine fish species caught by anglers throughout the NY/NJ region. 
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"Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s
words, 'Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,'
motivate me to include the struggles against environmental
racism and economic injustice in my lifelong commitment to
social justice activism. No group of people should be forced
to bear the disproportionate burdens of having incinerators,
landfills, sewage treatment plants, oil refineries, and other
polluters in their communities because of the color of their
members’ skin or income level."
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