The MANCHESTER Times Vol. 30 - No. 38
In This Week’s Edition
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
4th Annual Christmas In The Pines
Officials Want More Clean-up Of Chemicals
BREAKING NEWS @
jerseyshoreonline.com
Community News Pages 10-15
Dr. Izzy Sound News Page 18
Inside The Law Page 21
Classifieds Page 24
Photo by Bob Vosseller This little girl enjoyed providing her Christmas gift list to Santa Claus during the 4th Annual Christmas in The Pines held at Harry Wright Lake. By Bob Vosseller MANCHESTER – T he fou r th festive Christmas in the Pines holiday event was held recently. It marked the second year at its current location at Harry Wright Lake and drew a large crowd. The holiday event was created by the township’s Chamber of C om me rce a nd while The Chamber is
still involved, the bulk of it is now coordinated by Township Recreation Director Tracey Lynch and members of her staff. As in years past, there were vendors, food trucks, costumed characters and organizations informing visitors of what they do. There was a lot of food to enjoy ranging from fried Oreos, funnel cake, hot
chocolate, kettle corn, pizza, barbecue chicken and other items. This year’s event also served as the community’s annual Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony which is normally held in front of Town Hall on Colonial Drive. Christmas in the Pines featured a theme this year of “The Grinch That Stole Christmas” w it h seve r a l st a ge
b o a r d s w it h h a n d painted scenes made by members of the Recreation Depar tment staff. Lynch noted that, “Ch r ist ma s i n t he Pines is a celebration for our community to come together with their friends, family, and neighbors to ring in the Christmas season. It was a very (Pines - See Page 4)
Unidentified Drones Draw Concern Across Tri-State Area By Bob Vosseller JERSEY SHORE – Amid many reports of car-sized drones flying at night across areas of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York and lukewarm responses from federal and state authorities, people are still asking who put them in the air and why? Speculation by the public has ranged from the drones being a new military technology being tested by the government for surveillance purposes to others feeling the devices are being
operated by a foreign power for more sinister purposes. Mayors from throughout the state were called to the New Jersey Regional Operations & Intelligence Center recently. They were told by state authorities that there was nothing to worry about. However, they didn’t know what they were. This didn’t answer everyone’s questions. “How can you say there’s no need for concern when you don’t even know where they come from and where they go or who owns them?” Berkeley Mayor
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John Bacchione said the following day. The Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office issued a post about the situation stating, “As reported sightings of drones continue throughout Monmouth County, Sheriff Shaun Golden is asking federal and state officials to collaborate in identifying the source of activity reported across the region.” The post continued, “the Monmouth County Sheriff ’s Office and partners in law enforcement are actively monitoring (Drones - See Page 5)
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By Bob Vosseller MANCHESTER – Township officials are advocating that more work be done to contain harmful chemicals spread by the military base. Councilwoman Michele Zolezi said she spoke to the federal Environmental Protection Agency because she is a member of a local advisory committee. She provided testimony urging for more funding to local municipalities because per-polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) have impacted areas of Manchester. In June, details of an Air Force Civil Engineer Center forum addressed how contamination from PFAS could possibly move into drinking water. According to the Air Force’s private drinking water sampling program, even in small amounts the chemicals can cause some serious problems to a person’s health. Increased exposure has had a correlation to higher cholesterol levels, kidney and testicular cancer and impacts on the immune system, according to findings by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It can also interfere with liver function. Chemicals used by both the military and local fire companies spread PFAS into the soil at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and into the water table of its surrounding communities. There were signs of contamination in the surface water and some drinking water supplies in in the Pine Lake section of Manchester over the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer, according to the U.S. Air Force. The chemicals were used by firefighting teams performing drills at the Joint Base but it was unknown at the time that its use would have a lasting impact on the drinking water. The chemical foams that make up PFAS were developed by 3M and the U.S. Navy in the 1960s. Manchester joined a national lawsuit against 3M in hopes of getting reimbursement for the cost outlay. The U.S. District Court in South Carolina and 3M reached an agreement in April with various water suppliers nationwide which calls for 3M to pay $10.3 billion over the next 13 years to providers of water in order to test and add filtration systems related to the PFAS contamination. (Clean-up - See Page 5)
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