On Wednesday, October 28, 2015, Julie Blake, the Democratic candidate for Hopewell Township Committee, will be a special guest bartender at Trenton Social. Originally planned as a fundraiser for Julie’s campaign for Hopewell Township Committee, Blake chose to dedicate the efforts against the grave threat that Mercer County’s towns collectively face with the proposed PennEast pipeline. 10% of the evening’s proceeds will be donated to benefit local citizen organizations, as they continue to battle PennEast.
“I am pleased that TC Nelson and Trenton Social invited me to host as guest bartender. We need to mobilize all forces to stop this pipeline in the same way that previous generations of residents blocked Interstate I-95 from cutting through our community,” said Blake. “I’m happy to help NJ Conservation Fund, Hopewell Township Citizens Against the PennEast Pipeline (HTCAPP), FoHVOS, the Sourland Conservancy, Delaware Riverkeeper Network, ANJEC, and other local environmental organizations, as we continue our fight against PennEast.”
The proposed PennEast pipeline would cut a 125-foot wide swath of destruction through 108 miles in NJ and PA, blasting through and clear-cutting preserved open space, nature reserves, and protected farmlands, contaminating the region’s water supply, and threatening numerous endangered species. Citizens, local environmental organizations, and multiple government officials have come together in opposition to PennEast and the irrevocable harm it would cause to the environment.
Julie Blake has called upon the Hopewell Township Committee to proactively test residents’ wells and ensure that residents’ water is not contaminated by arsenic.
“We need to conduct this testing not just on the wells where the proposed pipeline is sited, but also on other wells that would be negatively impacted by the pipeline. And we cannot look at this as a “one-off” exercise – we need to force PennEast to test for 10 years,” said Blake. She also addressed the importance of the protection of the watershed. “We have a woodlands protection act and a stream corridors protection act, and it’s time we started enforcing their provisions vs. kicking the can down the road, and hoping to be protected from the ravages of the proposed pipeline.”
Recently, Blake received the endorsement of Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman.
“As a proud environmentalist, Hopewell’s Julie Blake knows how important it is that we oppose the PennEast Pipeline and preserve clean air, clean water, and natural resources for our children’s future,” said Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman.
Julie Blake’s guest bartender night at Trenton Social will be on Wednesday, October 28, 2015 from 5pm to 7pm at Trenton Social. The Trenton Social is located at 449 South Broad Street Trenton, NJ 08611. Parking is available in the rear parking lot off Ferry Street. People of all parties and political persuasions are invited to come together and help us Stop PennEast!
A donation table will be available for anyone wanting to contribute additional monies to local environmental organizations opposing the proposed PennEast pipeline.
