Sierra Club Saddened by Passing of Senator McNamara

New Jersey State Senator Henry P. McNamara passed away at the age of 83 today. McNamara served on the Senate for 23 years and retired in 2007. He was a Republican Senator who worked for many environmental protections over the years. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, released the following statement:

 “The New Jersey Sierra Club is saddened over the passing of Senator Hank McNamara and our hearts go out to his family and friends in their time of grief. We worked with the Senator on many important issues, especially while he was Chair of the Senate Environment Committee. As Chair, he was able to shape and move many pieces of important environmental legislation to make New Jersey better. He also stopped many proposed weakening and rollbacks of the Christie Administration and was a supporter of New Jersey’s Highlands Act.

“As a response to Governor Whitman’s cuts to the DEP budget, Senator McNamara acted along with other Republican Senators put the Corporate Business Tax on the ballot. This dedicated 4% of funds for watershed protection and cleaning up toxic sites and brownfields. He was independent and willing to stand up to his own party to put together a stable source of funding that provided money for open space in New Jersey for more than 15 years. We didn’t always agree, but we were always able to get along and work towards consensus or compromise. He was always cordial and friendly, and I enjoyed working with him over the years.

“When you look around New Jersey and see toxic sites being cleaned up, open space preserved, and clean water protected in the Highlands, you know that Senator McNamara helped make that happen. E lead major efforts to clean up contaminated sites and put them towards productive uses under re-development, especially in urban areas. He also opposed the privatization of DEP’s Site Remediation Program, which later happened under Democrats. Henry McNamara’s legacy has led to a better environment for all of New Jersey.”