Enviro Bills Up in Assembly Monday

The following bills are on the Assembly board list for a full floor vote on Monday, January 13, 2020.

“There are two critical bills that are not listed on the Assembly board list for Monday. The bomb train safety bill, A3783 (Eustace), is crucial legislation that would protect the people of New Jersey from dangerous trains traveling through their communities. The plastic bag ban bill, S2776 (Smith), is landmark legislation for New Jersey when it comes to plastics and dealing with plastic pollution. It is critical that the Assembly moves these bills forward and gets them to the Governor’s desk,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.

A4819 (Benson) Establishes goals, initiatives, and programs to encourage and support the use of plug-in electric vehicles. The updated version includes language of at least 330,000 registered light duty vehicles in the state to be plug-in electric by December 2025 and 2 million EV’s by 2035.

“Finally, the roadblocks to make EV’s a reality in New Jersey are being lifted. This legislation is more critical because cars and trucks are the biggest source of air pollution in our state. The legislature is now accelerating moving forward with the original bill instead of the weakened one amended by the Murphy Administration. The new version will have the same targets as the original bill of 330,000 EV’s by 2025, 2 million by 2035, and at least 85% of all light duty vehicles sold in New Jersey will be electric by December of 2040. This bill will help kick electric vehicles into high gear. It’s a major step forward in making EVs a reality in our state,” said Jeff Tittel. “We are finally going to put our foot on the acceleration and move forward after Murphy’s staff to cut back and weaken EV goals. Now it is critical that the bill is pushed through committee and will move forward in both houses.”

According to the bill, By December 31, 2025, at least 400 DC Fast Chargers shall be available for public use at no fewer than 200 charging locations in the State. At least 75 of the 200 or more charging locations shall be at travel corridor locations, equipped with at least two DC Fast Chargers per location, each capable of providing at least 150 kilowatts of charging power, and no more than 25 miles between the charging locations. Also, at least 100 of the 200 or more charging locations shall be community locations.

“Close to half of our greenhouse gasses in New Jersey come vehicles and our state suffers from failing air levels. This bill is the first major step in reducing pollution and GHG’s from our transportation sector. Now it is critical for the legislature and Governor Murphy to pass and sign this comprehensive electric vehicle legislation. Our state used to be a leader in innovation and transportation and can be again in clean transport. We can see the benefits of clean air and clean jobs if the BPU builds a state-wide network of charging stations, creates green jobs, saves people money on gas, and reduces air pollution. Half of New Jersey’s greenhouse gases come from mobile sources, but these emissions can be easily cut by implementing EV technology,” said Tittel.

A6088 (Burzichelli) / S4275 (Smith): Allows BPU to increase cost to customers of Class I renewable energy requirements for energy years 2022 through 2024, under certain conditions.

“We support this bill because the solar market may crash, but our concern is that this is a temporary fix. We are heading into a crisis for solar energy, and this bill is just a stopgap instead of a real solution. We have said from the beginning that the cost cap would hurt the solar industry and cause it to crash. This legislation is just a short-term fix that averages the cost cap out over five years to extend the program. Under this bill we can only get to 200 Megawatts per year instead of the 500 MW that we need to reach our clean energy goals,” said Jeff Tittel. “We should be completely getting rid of the cap. We don’t have caps on energy from coal, nuclear, oil, or gas. Having a cap on solar hurts renewable energy and favors fossil fuels.”

The bill would allow the BPU to increase the cost cap on Class I renewable energy requirements if the total energy costs during energy years 2019 through 2021 is less than 9%. Since the solar program went into effect about 10 years ago, solar has become 29 percent more efficient and gone down in price by 25 percent.

“What we need is a real fix, not a temporary one. This bill raises the cost cap and averages it out over five years. If the costs exceed the limit the BPU is still required to set aside the Renewable Portfolio Standard for that year. You also have to factor in legacy SRECs as well as transition SRECs. Our concern is that even with this change in the law it will not allow us to have a robust solar program,” said Jeff Tittel. “We need to remove the cost cap, but we also need to come up with a new solar program that is more cost effective and works for all of New Jersey. This includes looking at other funding mechanisms and regulations to push for solar programs to get done.”

A2731 (Taliaferro/Space): removes statutory limitations on the number of permits that may be issued by Division of Fish and Wildlife for the taking of beaver.

“Currently the Division of Fish and Wildlife would only issue 200 permits for the taking of beavers and this bill would remove that cap.  Instead of the biologists at Fish and Wildlife setting the standards, we are doing it through legislation and this is wrong. The standards should be based on science, not politics.  Beavers can be a nuisance but they are also an important part of our ecosystem. We are concerned that this could lead to the extinction of beavers in New Jersey,” said Jeff Tittel.

Supporters of the bill say that beavers are pests and that trapping is the best way to manage them. Beaver dams have flooded roads and houses, and fallen trees can damage property. There are many nonlethal beaver management options, including physical deterrents like steel fences.

“Instead of trapping more beavers, we should be focusing on a comprehensive beaver management plan. This bill will do nothing to mitigate problems caused by beavers. We need to manage our lands in a way that respects the environment and nature. The limit of 200 permits was based on conservation figures calculated by Fish and Wildlife scientists. There is no science behind removing the limit, it caters only to trappers,” said Tittel. “We have been fighting this legislation for years, and we will continue fighting.”

A1030 (Johnson) / S2421 (Smith/Bateman): Concerns installation of electric vehicle charging stations in common interest communities. This bill would promote, encourage, and remove obstacles to the use of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations by prohibiting common interest communities, such as condominiums and homeowners’ associations, from adopting or enforcing any rule that prohibits the installation or use of an EV charging station in a unit owner’s designated parking space.

“This legislation is a critical step forward towards making EV infrastructure accessible for everyone.  Residents should have RIGHT-To-CHARGE where people can petition their landlord or condo association for private charging station or pay for a public charging station. We can also have the Economic Development Authority require any project with state funding to have charging stations,” said Tittel.

A5663 (McKeon) / S3985 (Smith): Expands definition of “qualified offshore wind project” to include “open access offshore wind transmission facility.

“This bill will figure out the most cost-effective and environmentally beneficial ways to bring offshore wind power onto land. This is an issue that we need to take a careful look at as we are moving forward with these different offshore wind projects. Offshore wind can be the engine that drives our state to reach Governor Murphy’s 100% clean energy goals. Climate change impacts are happening now, and it is critical for New Jersey to transition to renewable energy sources to reduce those impacts. Offshore wind could feasibly power 1.2 million homes with clean energy. As we continue to rebuild our coast in the wake of multiple storm events, we need to invest in clean, renewable energy sources that do not contribute to climate change,” said Jeff Tittel.

A6014 (Vainieri Huttle): Establishes NJ Climate Change Resource Center at Rutgers University, appropriates up to $500,000. The resource center would carry out interdisciplinary research activities to help New Jersey adapt and prepare for climate change.

“Establishing a Climate Change Resource Center is a good step forward when it comes to being prepared and stronger than the next storm, but $500,000 is not enough money to get the job done. Rutgers is spending $4 million a year on a new football coach, but we can only spend $500,000 for climate change research. They need to get their priorities straight. This is a fumble when it comes to climate change. A recent study found that much of New Jersey, including inland counties, are more vulnerable to climate impacts now than before Sandy. We must start taking real actions to fight climate change now. We are in a climate crisis, and New Jersey is the only state on the east coast that does not have any kind of sea level rise climate adaptation plan,” said Jeff Tittel. “This Resource Center will help use the latest science to put climate and sea level rise in DEP rules and state legislation, but more money needs to go toward this center for it to be effective.”

ACR198 (Pinkin)/ SCR135 (Greenstein):  Urges cooperative approach among all levels of government to provide funding and other resources to clean up plastic pollution.

“Plastics are a menace and an existential threat to our drinking water, beaches, and wildlife.  Cleaning up plastic pollution is important, but we need a comprehensive plastic bag ban to help combat our plastic problem. It is critical that the Assembly move forward with S2776 (Smith/Greenstein) because it is one of the most important bills on banning plastics in New Jersey. It is landmark legislation for New Jersey when it comes to plastics and dealing with plastic pollution, and it is critical that our legislators push this bill through. We need a comprehensive statewide ban before our plastic problem gets any worse,” said Tittel. 

A5432 (Milam/Land): Requires DEP Commissioner to establish individual transferable quota system for menhaden purse seine fishery.

“Menhaden are an important species and the food supply and stability of our fisheries, but this bill would lead to overfishing of this critical fish. Our concern is that the bill will privatize the regulation and mandate by setting up this quote system. By locking in quotas for different fishing interests, we believe it will lead to overfishing. What is an even bigger problem is the trading system of quotas. Menhaden are a critical link to the food web and are known as forage species. This means they function as a food source for larger species like bluefish and striped bass. This legislation will essentially be a destructive domino effect throughout the marine food chain. It will not only impact these important species, but impact New Jersey’s commercial and recreational fisheries,” said Jeff Tittel.

A5583 (Pinkin) / S3919 (Smith/Bateman): Prohibits sale, lease, rent or installation of certain equipment or products containing hydrofluorocarbons or other greenhouse gases.

“This bill is a step in the right direction when it comes to reducing GHG’s from the products we use everyday. Hydrofluorocarbons represent around 1% of total greenhouse gases but their impact on global warming can be hundreds to thousands of times greater than that of carbon dioxide. They can be found in cooling products like refrigerators, air conditioning for our homes and cars, aerosols, and more,” said Tittel. “It is important that we prohibit and phase out all products containing HCF’s and greenhouse gases so that we can mitigate our impact to global warming.”

A5681/5682 (Pinkin) / S3939/3944 (Smith): Establishes Recycling Market Development Council. The Council would look at existing recycling markets and recommend ways to stimulate recycling and how to reduce contamination of collected recyclables.

“We’re seeing a major drop in recycling in New Jersey. In the early 1990’s, we recycled over half of municipal and household waste. Now we are down to 37%. China’s decision to no longer import plastic waste has caused the recycling market to collapse. Some towns are no longer taking plastics. Recycling facilities are closing, or opening only once or twice a month. This bill says that New Jersey needs to develop new recycling markets. Rutgers has invented the first plastic lumber that uses recycled plastics, and more innovation needs to be encouraged. We need to focus on coming up with more markets for recycling, and establishing a Recycling Market Development Council is a step in the right direction,” said Jeff Tittel.

A6102 (Kennedy): Provides two-year exemption for hospitals from requirement to source separate and recycle food waste.

“We oppose this legislation because hospitals should be the easiest place to separate and recycle food waste. We are in a climate crisis and our waste is a major contributor. Food waste that is brought to landfills instead of anaerobically digested or composed contributes to global warming and GHG emissions. As we move toward getting to zero carbon, we need to move towards getting to zero food waste,” said Jeff Tittel. “Hospitals create a tremendous amount of food waste, and they should be one of the simplest places where food waste could be recycled.”

A4535 (Zwicker): Establishes the “Energy Infrastructure Public – Private Partnership Act.”

“We have concerns with this bill because it provides privatization over direct government spending. It means more privatization of our grid and electrical system that takes away from government entities having control. The bill could be used to foster more fossil fuel versus energy efficiency and renewables. If we stop raiding the Clean Energy Fund and other environmental funds, that becomes an excuse to have to have these privatization programs go forward. Since the legislation would be done through the EDA  and its chair is the head of Natural Gas, we are concerned that New Jersey would promote more natural gas and fossil fuels versus renewable energy and efficiency,” said Tittel.

A1751 (Quijano) / S721 (Greeinstein): Authorizes use of electric school buses.

“We need the legislature to do more than just expand the width of school buses. They need to come up with a real program to get electric school buses on the road,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.