Christie’s Gov Shutdown: Disaster for Environment

As the month closes, the state government is faced with a shutdown because of the inability of the Legislature and the Governor to agree on a budget plan. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, released the following statement:

“This year on July 4^th, instead of enjoying fireworks we may be playing Russian Roulette with our environment. The impending government shutdown would mean a halt of all non-essential services. This will have a horrific impact on the people of New Jersey, not only in their ability to enjoy the holiday, but making sure that the environment and public health are protected. Children could be swimming in sewage down the shore because inspectors and water monitors won’t be working. There will be no one out to enforce environmental laws and make sure that chemicals aren’t being spilled and our air and water are safe. The shutdown would ruin our Independence Day weekend but create a polluters holiday because of the lack of enforcement. Just like a spoiled child, or Donald Trump, if Christie doesn’t get what he wants he’ll close things down. Christie has become the ‘Grinch Who Stole July 4^th.’

“The Legislature needs to stand up to Christie and pass a clean budget that’s not tied to any other legislation. Otherwise we’re risking a shutdown. Under a shutdown, all the New Jersey state parks close and hundreds of thousands of people will not be able to enjoy these areas. This means we’ll lose dozens of swimming areas, campgrounds, and picnic areas for people to enjoy the holiday. Instead of having a BBQ in Cheesequake, you may end up having a BBQ in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Instead of swimming in Shepard’s Pond you could be looking for a puddle behind a mall. Families who want to go camping at places such as Belleplain, Worthington and Brendan Byrne campgrounds will end up camping in their backyard. The closing of these parks is especially serious because New Jersey has a shortage of recreation space already.

“Our state parks are some of the most heavily used in the country. The most used state park in the country is Liberty State Park. Under a shutdown, it will be closed and people won’t be able to enjoy the fireworks. More importantly, people who wanted to go swimming at places like Island Beach State Park, Round Valley Reservoir or Atco Lake won’t be able to. On regular summer weekends, most swimming and picnic areas are closed by 10 am because they’re already filled. We haven’t built a new swimming area or campground in 36 years. This shutdown would create a tremendous amount of additional pressure on county and local parks that can’t handle it. This will cost the state tens of millions of dollars in lost economic activity and revenue.

“If there’s a shutdown, we won’t have people monitoring the beaches to make sure there are no sewage spills or testing to see if the water is clean enough to swim in. If there’s a bear walking through a neighborhood, we won’t have any conservation offices to deal with it. If there’s a chemical spill or pipeline explosion, emergency responders on call may not have enough backup or support staff to help clean it up. If there’s more than one spill, it could lead to a disaster. There may not be staff to rescue lost hikers and protect against poaching. We could face serious environmental and safety consequences under a shutdown.

“Governor Christie has the lowest governor approval of anyone in the country. He’s bullying his way through and trying to force the legislature to do what he wants, regardless of the consequences to the rest of the state. He has a history of stealing from the Clean Energy Fund and this year’s budget continues this with another $235 million. It has become the Cleaned-Out Fund. He’s also taking money from important programs such as the Spill Fund, Recycling Fund, and Hazardous Waste Clean-Up Fund. There is also still language that allows him to take money from environmental settlements such as Exxon. This budget gives tax breaks to millionaires while cutting core environmental programs and robbing funds. This is a Trumpian budget and the Legislature may not even pass it as is. There are no winners in this situation; only losers.

“Once again some of the Legislature is caving to Christie and his tirades at the expense of the people of New Jersey. They need to stand up to him and pass a clean budget. He’s holding the environment hostage with his budget. Every year during budget season, State Street gets renamed ‘Christies’ Shakedown Street’ because he forces his way into getting what he wants from the Legislature. Instead of fighing back, many of the Legislature are going along with him, threatening the closure of our government over the July 4^th holiday. We need to get the Rutgers Stem Cell Center built to develop spines for the Legislature. This may be Christie’s last budget, but the damage that it will do to NJ’s environment and economy will outlast him for decades to come.”