SOUTH JERSEY GAS PIPELINE GETS APPROVAL

The Board of Public Utilities finally approved plans for a 22-mile natural gas pipeline to run through the Pinelands to the B.L. England Generating Station in Upper Township. Environmentalists have fought the construction of a pipeline through the Pinelands, claiming it would damage the land and cause serious problems in the event of a rupture. The Press of Atlantic City reports that the pipeline will follow a path along the shoulder of Route 49 from Maurice River Township through 10 miles of protected Forest Management Area, then along Route 50 to Tuckahoe Road. The new B.L. England power plant will help to supply electricity to areas that will lose power service when the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant shuts down in 2019.