Note: Please make sure that you verify your town to show as Robbinsville when you sign, as it may autofill a different town

 

Dear Robbinsville Residents,  

Please review the information below and sign our petition to have the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) reject the permit request for the Princeton Memorial Park to build a Crematorium near Sharon Elementary school, resident homes off Gordon road, and Community park. Crematoriums can emit harmful air quality toxins into the environment. We have from now through November 10th to submit our formal public concern to the NJDEP before the final application process review on November 22nd. Please sign the petition and stop this from being built near our elementary school.

What you can do to help:

1) Sign this petition!

2) Send an email to Connor.Lapiska@dep.nj.gov with your comments/objections with subject "Permit Activity Number: PCP240001 - Princeton Memorial Park - Public Comment" and content from below.

 

Subject: Public Comment for Princeton Memorial Park Crematorium PreConstruction Permit Activity Number: PCP240001

I am writing to express my public concern over Princeton Memorial Park Crematorium Pre-Construction Permit Activity Number PCP240001. This preconstruction permit proposes to install a human cremation retort with a processing rate of 175 pounds per hour at 403 Gordon Rd, Robbinsville, Mercer County, New Jersey, 08691. This location is right behind Sharon Elementary School, where many young children in our town attend. I strongly feel this draft preconstruction permit is inappropriate and should not be approved because of specific air pollutants released during cremation and their potential health effects on residents who live near the facility and the young children who attend the nearby Sharon School.

 

When reviewing the draft permit documentation, the facility will be allowed to operate 3800 hours a year - or 10 hours a day, 365 days a year. It will be permitted to emit the following air pollutants per year:

• 10 tons of VOCs
• 100 tons of sulfur dioxide
• 25 tons of nitrogen oxide
• 100 tons of carbon monoxide
• 100 tons of trisodium phosphate
• 100 tons ammonia
• 5 tons lead
• 100 tons methane
• Other particulate matter 

Furthermore, the draft preconstruction permit does not require monitoring or record-keeping for emissions from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). A facility that is not required to provide proof that it is monitoring emissions or provide regular evidence of the proper functioning of its filtering system has no incentive to do these things. I don’t see mercury, a huge emissions concern for crematoriums, being monitored as part of the permit application. 

 

 

Not only do we have young children attending Sharon Elementary, which backs up directly to the cemetery, but we also have kids playing sports and enjoying other recreational activities at Community Park, directly across the street. Should the preconstruction permit be approved, residents nearby would be exposed to the air pollutants emitted from the Princeton Crematorium. I am also particularly concerned with how the air quality pollutants affect children or nearby residents with pre-existing respiratory health conditions. This is unacceptable and inappropriate for a residential area with a park and a school. 

 

This is not an appropriate location for a crematorium. Please reject the Princeton Memorial Park Crematorium PreContruction Permit Activity Number PCP240001 for the sake of our young children and nearby residents.

 

For your review and consideration, here is a list of articles that provide researched information on the Negative Impacts of Human Cremation on Air Quality:

 

National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health (NCCEH): https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/FINAL_Field%20Inquiry-Crematoria%20emissions%20and%20air%20quality%20impacts_EN_0.pdf

 

“The pollutants of most concern from crematoria emissions are PCDD/Fs, Hg, and delicate particulate matter (PM2.5).2,3,5-7 PCDD/Fs and Hg are known to be toxic to humans and can bioaccumulate in tissues. PCDD/Fs are classified as possible human carcinogens, and Hg is a neurotoxin. Exposure to PM2.5, which can reach deep into the lungs, can increase the risks of heart disease, lung cancer, asthma, and adverse birth outcomes and exacerbate other conditions such as diabetes. For these critical pollutants, agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) advise limiting exposure, particularly for vulnerable populations such as babies, children, pregnant women, and the elderly.”

 

Cremation Society of Milwaukee: https://www.cremationsocietyofmilwaukee.com/eco-friendly-cremation-as-a-sustainable-alternative

Earth Funeral: https://titancasket.com/blogs/funeral-guides-and-more/is-cremation-bad-for-the-environment

 

Thank you for your consideration,