Preliminary Assessment DOT Property Block 46; Lot 13.03 Harding Township, NJ

Prepared by: Benjamin L. Spinelli Partner Greener by Design April 23, 2020

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 The following preliminary assessment was prepared for Harding Township in order to evaluate the property designated as Block 46, Lot 13.03 in the Township of Harding, Morris County, NJ, also known as the “DOT Property”.

The Property

The DOT Property is located between Bailey’s Mill Road and Route 287 in Harding. It consists of approximately 11.3 acres of land. An aerial photograph using the most recent imagery that also identifies the boundaries of the property by block and lot is on the cover of this preliminary assessment. The land is a combination of forested wetlands and mixed hardwood forest. The property’s southern and western boundary is the . This lot is adjacent to existing preserved land owned by the Harding Land Trust.

A 7.5-minute topographic quadrangle map from the USGS with the location of this property indicated on that map is attached to this document as well. A search of the Morris County Clerk’s Office indicates the property was purchased by Peachcroft Farms in 1963. Prior to that the property was owned by Navillus Farms, which purchased the property in 1956. The prior owner was Earl Farms, Inc., which purchased the property in 1936. This portion of the property was never farmed as seen from historic aerials dating to 1931.

Environmental Resources

The Property is located in the Upper Passaic River watershed (Passaic River Upper-above Osborn Mills). The Passaic River forms the southern boundary of the property. The property is a combination of mature upland forest and forested wetlands. The approximate division is 40% uplands and 60% wetlands. This is based upon review of available aerial photography, NJ DEP Wetlands mapping as depicted on the NJ Geo-Web and actual on-site inspection of the property. Additionally, an advanced property report from the NJ Highlands Council data base was created.

The Landscape Project for the Region classifies the property as Tier 4 and Tier 5 habitat. There is habitat for both State and Federally listed threatened and endangered species on the property. Species that may be present include Wood Turtle, Bog Turtle, Bald Eagle, Indiana Bat, Northern Myotis. The site is located in the Highlands Physiographic province. It is in the designated Highlands Planning Area. The property is level and drains southward from the upland portion towards the Passaic River. There

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 are several minor tributary streams within the property that flow to the Passaic River. The forest is heavily impacted by the presence of non-native invasive species of plants typical of northern New Jersey . Investigation

1. I performed an investigation into the ownership and use of the subject property dating to at least 1932. This included on-site inspection, consulting or searching for Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for the site (none in existence), MacRae’s Industrial Directory (no references to the subject property), property records with the Morris County Clerk’s Office, NJ DEP’s Geo-Web GIS based information system, the Highlands Interactive Map, aerial photography from 1932 to the present and other records pertaining to this tract, including NJ DEP’s Data Miner and the US EPA database . This resulted in the following findings:

a. The property is currently owned by the New Jersey Department of Transportation. It was purchased from Peachcroft Estates in 1966 in conjunction with the construction of Route 287.

b. The property is currently not developed. It has not been developed since at least 1930. Based upon aerial photographs taken between 1930 and 2017 the property has been heavily forested during the entire period.

c. There are no and have never been any past industrial or commercial operations on the property between 1930 and the present. This includes the absence of any indication that there are any abandoned mines on the property and no evidence that there were ever any utilities serving the subject site.

d. There is no indication or report that there is or ever has been any hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, hazardous constituent or pollutants present on the subject property.

e. There is no record or indication of the presence or potential presence of historic fill, fill material or other deposits to either replace the existing soil at the site or to raise the topographic elevation of the site.

f. There are no current or former wastewater discharges or disposal points on the subject property.

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719

g. There are no current or former potable wells or other sources of drinking water or industrial process water on the subject property.

h. There are no, nor have there been any, structures present on the subject property and hence, no sources of heating any such structure.

i. There is no record of any current or prior remediation activities on the site.

j. There are no areas of concern (as defined by N.J.A.C. 7:26E-1.8) indicating that there are or ever has been pollutants or hazardous substances or wastes discharged into the environment on the subject property. Therefore, there are no recommendations for remediation or further inquiry into conditions on the site.

k. There are no current, nor have there ever been, any administrative, civil, or criminal enforcement actions for alleged violations of environmental laws which may have resulted in an environmental impact on the site.

2. A search of available records was performed on January 3, 2020 and January 6, 2020. The result of that search revealed the following:

a. The results of the Federal and State database search, conducted on January 3, 2020 and January 6, 2020, documents that the subject site is not listed on any of the searched databases. This list presents the complete database search results prepared using the EPA’s Enforcement and Compliance History database and the searchable NJ DEP Data miner site. Further FOIA and OPRA requests for information to the US EPA and the NJDEP were made concerning this property. No issues of concern were noted.

b. Superfund Enterprise Management System (SEMS), formerly CERCLA The subject site is not listed as a SEMS/CERCLA site. There are no SEMS/CERCLA sites listed within ½-mile of the site.

c. Federal National Priority List (NPL)/Delisted NPL The subject site is not listed as a NPL/Delisted NPL site. There are no NPL/Delisted NPL sites listed within 1.0-mile of the site.

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 d. Federal RCRA - Corrective Action Report (CORRACTS) The subject site is not listed as a CORRACTS site.

e. Federal RCRA - Treatment Storage and/or Disposal (TSD) Facilities The subject site is not listed as a TSO facility. There are no RCRA-TSD sites listed within 0.5-mile of the site.

f. Federal RCRA - Large Quantity Generators The subject site nor the adjacent sites are listed as a RCRA Large Quantity generator list.

g. Federal RCRA - Small Quantity Generators The subject site nor the adjacent sites are listed as a RCRA Small Quantity generator list.

h. Federal RCRA - Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators The subject site nor the adjacent sites are listed as a RCRA Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity generator list.

i. Federal Emergency Response Notification System (ERNS) The subject site is not listed on the ERNS list.

j. Federal Institutional Control/Engineering control (US INST/ENG CONTROLS) The subject site is not listed on the US INST/ENG CONTROLS list.

k. NJ Institutional Control/Engineering control (NJ INST/ENG CONTROLS) The subject site is not listed on the NJ INST/ENG CONTROLS list.

l. New Jersey State Hazardous Waste Sites (NJ SHWS) The subject site is not listed on the NJ SHWS list.

m. NJ Landfills The subject site is not listed as a landfill, and there are no NJ landfill sites listed within ½ -mile of the site.

n. NJ Leaking Underground Storage Tanks (LUST) The subject site is not listed LUST list or the Historic LUST list.

o. NJ Registered Underground Storage Tanks (UST) The subject site is not listed on the UST list and there are no UST sites within ¼ -mile of the property.

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719

p. NJ Voluntary Cleanup Program Sites (NJ VCP) The subject site is not listed as a NJVCP site.

q. NJ Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) The subject site is not listed as a ISRA site and there are no ISRA sites within ½ -mile of the property.

r. NJ Brownfields (BROWNFIELDS) The subject site is not listed as a Brownfields site and no Brownfields site within ½ -mile of the property.

s. NJ Spills The subject site is not listed on the NJ Spills list.

t. NJ Releases The subject site is not listed on the NJ Release list.

u. Orphan and Unmapped Sites Summary Lists were reviewed, no evidence of the subject site or nearby properties appeared on these lists.

3. On December 24, 2019, I performed an on-site inspection of the property. I had access to the entire property and was able to walk the entire property. The property was fenced, but I was able to gain access through a section of fencing that was knocked down by falling trees via the adjacent Harding Land Trust preserve. My inspection took place during a period when vegetation was dormant and did not interfere with the ability to observe the condition of the property.

I was able to observe if there were any indications that there was soil disturbance, old structures or foundations. There were none. There were no areas of distressed vegetation or other indications, such as stained soil or evidence of excavations, that there were subsurface conditions warranting further investigation. There was no indication that any solid waste, fill or other non- native materials had been disposed of on the subject property.

• Agricultural Fields: Based on the on-site inspection and corresponding review of historic information, environmental databases, and aerial photographs for this area, the property consisted of mature woodlands and heavily forested wetlands back to at least 1930. • Hazardous Substances/Petroleum Products: No visual evidence of any hazardous substances or petroleum products was observed on-site.

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 • Chemical Storage: No visual evidence of chemical storage was observed on- site. • Underground Storage Tanks (UST): No visual evidence of a UST was observed on-site. • Storage Tanks & Drums: No visual evidence of any storage tanks, drums, hazardous substances or petroleum products was observed. • Wells, Septic Systems, Pits, Ponds: No visual evidence of any wells, septic systems pits or ponds was observed. • Stressed Vegetation and/or stained soils: No stressed vegetation or stained soils were observed. • Odors: No odors were observed while on the site. • Telephone/Electric Poles/Transformers: Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) are industrial chemicals, commonly found in cooling fluid within electrical transformers. No transformers were observed on the subject site. • Utilities: No evidence of any utilities was observed on-site. • Solid Waste: No evidence of solid waste was observed on the site. • Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM): No visual evidence of any ACM was observed. • Lead: Lead is a health concern due to ingestion, particularly in the form of lead-based paints, but there is no evidence of lead painted items on the property. • Fill / Land Disturbance: Based upon review of historic aerial photography, review of available information on the DEP Geo-web and on-site inspection, the site topography appears to be undisturbed and unaltered with no evidence of fill being observed. • Radon: The NJDEP Radon Tier Assignment system classifies municipalities as having high, moderate or low potential for indoor radon problems based on the percentage of homes with radon concentrations greater than or equal to 4 picocuries/liter (pCi/I). Morris County is considered Tier 1, high potential, for indoor radon problems.

Conclusions

Based upon diligent inquiry and an on-site inspection of Block 46, Lot 13.03 in Harding Township, Morris County, NJ, I find no evidence or conditions that warrant a further inquiry into the history of the property or the investigation of any areas of concern on the site to determine if there has been the disposal or presence of any hazardous materials or pollutants on the property. The ascertainable information indicates that the

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 property has been undeveloped since at least 1930. The site is heavily vegetated and is comprised of forest and forested wetlands. There is no indication that there has ever been a structure on the site. There is no indication that there has ever been any industrial or commercial use of the site.

Attachments

• Township of Harding Tax Map with location of subject property. • USGS Quadrangle Map depicting location of subject property. • 1931 Historic Aerial of subject property. • 1956 Historic Aerial of subject property. • 1963 Historic Aerial of subject property. • 1979 Historic Aerial of subject property. • 2002 Historic Aerial of subject property. • Natural Heritage Data Base Search Results • Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Submission • Open Public Records Act (ORPR) Submission • Certification of Township Administrator

I certify under penalty of law that I have personally examined and am familiar with the information submitted herein, including all attached documents, and that based on my inquiry of those individuals immediately responsible for obtaining the information, to the best of my knowledge, I believe that the submitted information is true, accurate and complete. I am aware that there are significant civil penalties for knowingly submitting false, inaccurate or incomplete information and that I am committing a crime of the fourth degree if I make a written false statement which I do not believe to be true. I am also aware that if I knowingly direct or authorize the violation of any statute, I am personally liable for the penalties.

Benjamin L. Spinelli ______Date: April 23, 2020 Benjamin. L. Spinelli Partner Greener by Design

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 Attachments

Harding Township Tax Map

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719

USGS Quad Map

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719

1931 Aerial

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1956 Aerial

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1963 Aerial

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1979 Aerial

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2002 Aerial

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2017 Aerial

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719 State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection GOVERNMENT RECORDS REQUEST FORM

IMPORTANT NOTICE Please read this entire form carefully as it contains important information concerning the response to your record request, accessing records, disputing denials, and your rights concerning government records. For further information, access WWW.NJ.GOV/DEP/OPRA.

Requestor Information State Use Only Tracking # 270357 First Name: GENEVIEVE MI V Last Name TARINO Received 04/30/2020 Company: GREENER BY DESIGN, LLC. Date Access Send Electronic copies Mailing Address: 94 CHURCH ST SUITE 402 Method

gtarino@gbdtoday. All matters relating to the response and City: Harding Twp State: NJ Zip: 08901 Email: com access of any records identified for this request should be directed to:

Business Telephone: (201) 478-0745 Extension NJDEP – Office of Record Access 401 East State Street PO Box 420 Mail Code 401-06Q Facsimile Telephone: (732) 253-7719 Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0420 Tele #: (609) 341-3121 Fax #: (609) 292-1177 Record Request Details: To whom it may concern, My name is Genevieve Tarino and I_m a consultant at Greener by Design, an environmental consulting and energy asset management firm based in New Brunswick. We were hired by the New Jersey Township of Harding to assist with a land use issue associated with the Green Acres program, administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. I am writing to request any information about environmental contamination, remediation and clean up associated with Block 46, Lot 13.03. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. I look forward to your reply, thank you. Sincerely, Genevieve Tarino [email protected] 201.478.0745

Disposition Notes Record Request Response In Based on the record request, no responsive records have been identified. Requester - Open should contact the Office of Record Access at 609-341-3121 with any questions. Progress Filled - Closed X

Denied - Closed Partial - Closed Addendum Disposition Notes: NONE

05/11/2020 Custodian Signature Date Access to Government Records Under the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.)

Information Regarding the Requested Records Facility Name: If your request is in reference to a single facility, please provide the name of the facility, and the name of the operator name of the facility: Operator Name:

Please provide the owner name the facility or parcel of land: Owner Name: NJ Department of Transportation

Street Address 1: Rear Mt Kemble Avenue If your request is in reference to a specific parcel of land, please provide the street address, block, lot and property owner of the parcel of land: Street Address 2: Harding Township, NJ (Note: if the property in question is over multiple blocks and lots, please list all in the description field below) Block: 46 Lot: 13.03

County: Morris If your request is in reference to a facility, site or parcel of land, please provide the Municipality and County where the facility, site or parcel of land is located: Municipality: Harding Twp

If the request is in reference to a particular permit issued by NJDEP, please List Permit Type: List ID Numbers: provide the type of permit and any identifying numbers such as permit, incident or case numbers. (i.e. Fishing, Hunting, Hazardous Waste, Solid Waste, Land Use, NJPDES, Pesticides, Stream Encroachment, TWA, UST, Water Allocation)

Individual’s name: If your request is in reference to an individual, please provide the individual's name and type, and if the individual is a DEP employee, your relationship with the Type of Individual: individual: Relationship:

If the an individual was specified above, the individual was DEP Licensed, please License Type: specify the license type the individual holds:

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has responded to your submitted Open Public Records Act (OPRA) record request. The following information will help you understand the response and your next available actions. Tracking #: This is the Department’s assigned Tracking # to your OPRA record request, which should be used in all corresponding matters.

Record Request Response:  In Progress – Based on the nature of the request, the records sought, and/or the manner to which the records may exists, the Department requires additional time to investigate and respond to the request.  Filled – Based on the information provided in your request, the Department was able to investigate and respond to your record request.  Denied – Based on the nature of the request and/or the records sought, the Department has denied your request pursuant to a specific exemption(s) cited in N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 seq.  Partial – The Department has identified both responsive government records and records being denied based on the nature of the request and/or the records sought, that do not meet the definition of a government record pursuant to a specific exemption(s) cited in N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 seq.

Disposition Notes: Provides detailed information concerning the Department’s response to your request.

Accessing Records: Dependent on the volume of records and your interest, there are five (5) methods available to access the responsive government records:  File Review – Schedule a file review with the Department to directly access the records and take notes or tag records of interest for copying. Copying can be performed by either the Department’s onsite Copying Unit at State duplication fee costs or by the requester employing a Copy Vendor Service. If there are records stored in archives, a five-day processing period will be included prior to scheduling a review.  Copy Request – All records of interest will be copied by the Department’s onsite Copying Unit at State duplication fee costs unless a Copy Vendor Service is employed.  Electronic Records Request – Dependent on the size & nature of the e-records, the Department will email the records or provide a CD or DVD.  Fax Request – Based on the number of pages, the Department faxes the responsive records.  Web Access – The responsive records can be access directly through the Department’s web site. Web address will be provided.

SONJ-RRF-2 OPRA # 270357 Access to Government Records Under the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.) 1. The fees for duplication of a government record are specified below. We will notify you of any special charges, special service charges or other additional charges authorized by State law or regulation before processing your request. Payment shall be made by check or money order payable to the State of New Jersey and mailed to the address specified below.

Hard Copies: Letter & Legal size = $0.05 per page Electronic Records: CDs = $0.55 per CD Oversized Maps (Color) = $5.00 per map DVDs = $0.55 per DVD Oversized Maps (B&W) = $3.00 per map

2. Pursuant to OPRA (C.47:1A-5c & C47:1A-5d), the Department will apply special service charge for any extraordinary expenditure of time and effort to accommodate a request. The special service charge will be based on the actual direct cost of providing the records. The requester shall have the opportunity to review and object to the charge prior to it being incurred; however, in the event the requester objects to the special service charge, the request will be closed and access to the records will not be granted. 3. By law, the Department must notify you that it grants or denies a request for access to government records within seven business days after the custodian of the record requested receives the request, provided that the record is currently available and not in storage. If the record requested is not currently available or is in storage, the custodian will advise you within seven business days when the record can be made available and the estimated cost. You may agree with the custodian to extend the time for making records available, or granting or denying your request. 4. You may be denied access to a government record if your request would substantially disrupt agency operations and the custodian is unable to reach a reasonable solution with you. 5. If the Department was unable to comply with your request for access to a government record, the custodian will indicate the reasons for denial on the request form. 6. Except as otherwise provided by law or by agreement with the requester, if the custodian of the record requested fails to respond to you within seven business days of receiving a request form, the failure to respond will be considered a denial of your request. 7. Resolution of Disputed Findings: In the event that a requester does not agree with the Department’s record response, the requester should: No Records - Reexamined the request details to evaluate if all of the information was provided that could aid the Department in locating records. The Department’s ability to identify records of interest is in direct correlation to matching the Department information with the information provided on the request. Such important identifiers are Facility/Site Name, Address, Case #, Permit #, Block/Lot. Denial - If your request for access to a government record has been denied or unfilled within the time permitted by law, you have a right to challenge the decision by the Department to deny access. The Department denies access to records only when those records do not meet the definition of a government record and/or public access is not allowed pursuant to the law. At your option, you may either: a. Contact the Office of Record Access to re-visit the matter or provide further explanation. b. Institute a proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey c. File a complaint in writing with the Government Records Council (GRC). You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at PO Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email protected], or at their web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The Council can also respond to other questions about the law. 8. Information provided on this form may be subject to disclosure under the Open Public Records Act. Revised Addendum Disposition Notes: NONE

SONJ-RRF-2 OPRA # 270357 I certify under penalty of law that I have personally examined and am familiar ·with the information submitted herein, including all attached documents, and that based on my inqui1y of those individuals immediately responsible for obtaining the information, to the best of my knowledge, I believe that the . submitted information is true, accurate and complete. I am aware that there are significant civil penalties for knowingly submitting false, inaccurate or incomplete information and that I am committing a crime of the fourth degree if I make a written false statement which I do not believe to be true. I am also aware that if I knowingly direct or authorize the violation of any statute, I am personally liable for the penalties.

Benjamin L. Spinelli ______Date:June 10, 2020 Benjamin L. Spinelli Greener by Design Authorized Representative of Harding Twp.

Greener by Design, LLC 94 Church Street, Suite 402 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 732.253.7717 www.gbdtoday.com fax 732.253.7719