Baykeeper Advocacy initiatives shape our Estuary efforts

Much of the harm already done to our Estuary was propelled and justified by laws, regulations, and policies that focus exclusively on economic considerations at the cost of the environment, or focused on the needs of special interests over the needs of the people.

Baykeeper, through its advocacy programs, seeks to broaden this political, socio-economic view, adding a strong ecological component. By emphasizing and educating the public, politicians and regulators about such legal concepts as the Public Trust Doctrine (PTD) or Natural Resource Damages (NRD), we help people to see our Estuary from a new environmentally conscious point of view.

 
We advocate for the environment through community partnerships, by providing technical assistance to grassroots groups, by working with NJ and NY state and federal regulatory agencies, by fighting for better legislation, regulations and policies, and - as a last resort - through litigation.

Our Issues

Pollution
Major Estuary pollution sources include petrochemical and chemical corporations, landfills, oceangoing ships, ferries, and non-point sources (fertilizers and silt in stormwater runoff). Baykeeper advocates for cleanup of pollution, including the region's many Superfund sites, especially the Tierra Solutions/Occidental Chemical site that has contaminated sediments in the Passaic River and Newark Bay - the worst in-water dioxin site in the U.S. We also advocate for replacement of outdated municipal sewage systems and combined sewer outflows (CSOs), like those found in New York City and northern New Jersey. The Law is clear: polluters must pay to clean up the Bay, as required under the Clean Water Act, and other federal and state statutes. Polluters should also be assessed Natural Resource Damages (NRD), for the restoration or replacement of resources they've harmed.

Public Access
Over the past century pollution, physical barriers (such as fences and bulkheads), and prohibitions (the privatization of beaches and waterfront developments) have diminished public access to the Estuary. Under the Public Trust Doctrine (PTD), Baykeeper has defended the public's inalienable right of access to these waters. People have the right to walk beside, safely catch and eat fish and crabs, swim, and boat in our waterways. Baykeeper advocates for construction of waterfront walkways, public boat ramps and docks, for open space preservation as parks and other access points, and for pollution cleanup. We also work to gain public access to illegally restricted private beaches and waterfront developments.

 
Appropriate vs. Inappropriate Estuary / Watershed Development
Our waterfronts have long been inappropriately used as sites for polluting factories, leaky landfills, and unregulated junkyards - and more recently, for residential and commercial developments that fail to take the environment fully into consideration. Baykeeper seeks to prevent, modify, or remediate development that will damage wetlands and other sensitive ecosystems. A major example is our successful campaign against the construction of the massive Mills Mall development on wetlands in the Hackensack Meadowlands.
Learn More About Baykeeper's Advocacy Efforts

To learn more about Baykeeper's role and history in advocacy for the Hudson/Raritan Estuary download a PDF version of the Winter 2006 15th Anniversary Issue of The Estuarian by clicking here.

For more information on Advocacy and the Estuary, here are some more Baykeeper documents in PDF version available for downloading. Just click on the document title.

Victory In The Meadowlands: Spring 2005 15th Anniversary issue of The Estuarian.

Brownfields to Greenfields: A Position Paper from The NY/NJ Baykeeper.

Taking Back What is Rightfully Yours: A Workshop Manual the NY/NJ Baykeeper Public Trust Doctrine.