PSE&G Gives Hopatcong $650K

As Public Service Electric & Gas' Susquehanna-Roseland power line moves toward realization, the power company has agreed to give Hopatcong more than $650,000 to help mitigate the impact the project could have on environmental and public safety.

Work on the project—a 500-kilovolt line that would carry electricity from Berwick, Pa., area to Roseland in Essex County, passing through Hopatcong—is expected to cause the removal of hundreds of trees deep in a wooded area of Hopatcong, Borough Administrator Robert Elia said.

So the company has agreed to give the borough $342,000 to replace the trees. The money is intended to be used for infrastructure projects, such as the at Wednesday night.

Elia said the power company marked, recorded and placed a dollar value on each of the trees it plans to remove as part of the project.

"There's no ordinance in town that specifies that if you cut a tree down you ow the town a certain amount of money or you have to replant," he said. "So it's a good-faith effort."

Hopatcong will also receive $304,000 earmarked for public safety equipment, , from PSE&G.

"[PSE&G] wanted to cover the impact on the town," Elia said. "So if there's a fire up there, they'll need the [oxygen] tanks. They want to use it for public safety."