Gov. Murphy’s Road Back Plan Must Be Green

Today Governor Murphy held a press conference that unveiled The Road Back Plan, to re-open New Jersey from coronavirus quarantine. The plan included several steps: Sustained reductions in new cases, expanded testing, implementing robust contact tracing, securing safe places for isolation, responsible economic restart, and ensuring resiliency. Governor Murphy’s main principal in New Jersey’s blueprint is that public health creates economic health. New Jersey, New York and five other neighboring states have committed to a regional approach to reopening.

“As we slowly transition to re-open our state, it is important for Governor Murphy to push for a green agenda. We have seen the benefits of people driving less and cleaner air. Which is why Murphy’s road back plan needs to be green and include mass transit, renewable energy, electric vehicles, energy efficiency, green jobs, and rebuilding solar. Murphy must make sure he gets rid of his Executive Orders that limit public comment and oversight for major fossil fuel projects like NESE and the SRL pipeline. We also need to do a much better job on reducing pollution, cleaning up our water, and adapting to climate change. Murphy should not try and rush to reopen our economy, fast track permits, or weaken standards. Instead we need to strengthen rules and regulations and get rid of Christie’s rollbacks,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.

NJ Sierra Club still has major concerns with Governor Murphy’s Executive Order 127 that states any pending deadline for filing of a recommended report and decision pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:14B-10(c); and any pending deadline for adopting, rejecting or modifying a recommended report and decision, shall be extended by the number of days of the Public Health Emergency declared in Executive Order No. 103 (2020) plus an additional 90 days.

“While New Jersey transitions out of lock-down to get our economy re-opened, the Murphy Administration should not be fast tracking permits or getting around rules or standards. We should not let special interest groups be able to shortcut environment regulations, cut timelines, and limit public oversight and input. The Murphy Administration cannot allow that to happen especially because of the impacts of pollution,” said Tittel. “The coronavirus pandemic shows why we need stricter rules, stricter regulations, and reduce pollution, especially in overburdened communities.”

Last week, The NJ Sierra Club asked the Murphy Administration to strengthen and clarify Executive Orders 122 and 127 in order to protect public health during the COVID-19 health emergency. Despite the pandemic, major projects like the NJ Turnpike & GSP Expansion, SRL Pipeline, LNG Port in Gibbstown are moving forward without adequate public oversight and input.

“New Jersey’s blueprint for re-opening should get rid of Murphy’s EO’s that block public participation for major state and local projects. We cannot have remote or virtual hearings on projects like the LNG Port in Gibbstown, the NJ Turnpike & GSP Expansion, the SRL Pipeline, and more.  Local projects like the development proposal in Lambertville, the warehouse proposal in Franklin Township, and the 1,110-unit development in Jackson are still moving forward using online hearings. Holding hearings online creates a handicap for people without computers or access. People in opposition to these major projects cannot get information from OPRA or the local government,” said Tittel. “We need to make sure that as the state re-opens, three will be no fast-tracking permits or reducing or waving standards for controversial projects.”

Since the COVID-19 shutdown, air quality had improved and March was the cleanest month in over 10 years. Despite the silver lining of the pandemic, New Jersey has some of the worst air quality in the nation. According to the 2020 State of the Air report by the American Lung Association, New Jersey has nine counties with ‘F’ designations for ground-level ozone. North Jersey is ranked the 12th worst metropolitan area in the U.S. for ozone levels, which is slightly improved from last year.

“We need to use this pandemic as a way for major changes on dealing with how we do business and how we protect our environment even more. New Jersey needs an economic blueprint that needs to be green. We need to get the lead out of schools, upgrade water treatment plants, upgrade our sewer plants, and deal with CSO’s,” said Tittel. “New Jersey needs to expand mass transit, expand renewable energy like wind and solar, create green jobs, and reduce pollution. We need to do a much better job on reducing air pollution in EJ communities that have been overburdened by a disproportionate amount of pollution. During the current health emergency this is even more important because a recent Harvard study linked coronavirus risk to air pollution.”

Governor Cuomo on Sunday said construction and manufacturing jobs that represent low risks for workers will be among the first to resume once New York state begins reopening after the coronavirus shutdown. He set a tentative date of May 15 to start reopening, but that would depend on hospitalization rates declining for two weeks.

“New Jersey needs to make sure that hazardous sites are still being cleaned up, lead is our water is being removed, and sewage waste is properly managed. We need funding for programs that protect our food, our air, our water, and help clean up toxic sites across the state. DEP need to get rid of Christie’s rollbacks and strengthen their enforcement to make sure our environment and our public health is protected. This is especially important because EPA’s memorandum to suspend enforcement of environmental laws is still in place,” said Tittel.

Governor Murphy’s Executive Order 118 directs all state parks and forests to close until further notice. The order went into effect at 8pm on Tuesday, April 7, 2020. This closure applies to all park lots, grounds, facilities, trails, and playgrounds.

“We supported Governor Murphy’s decision to close our parks and forests because of the cutbacks.  But now as it is getting warmer, we believe that New Jersey should slowly phase in reopening parks for passive recreation and hiking while maintaining social distancing. We have always felt that passive walking and hiking should be allowed like Pennsylvania and New York are doing with a limited park system,” said Tittel. “New Jersey can stagger it and start with opening parks for hiking and walking that are less crowded, are in remote areas, and have limited parking. It is important for people, especially during quarantine to be able to exercise outside.”

Governor Murphy stated at today’s press conference that the state has learned valuable lessons that would be foolish to ignore. He went on to say that no one will be unprotected because of racial or socioeconomic status, they must be a part of response to this outbreak. As of Sunday night, New Jersey had surpassed 111,000 people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

“As the Murphy Administration moves forward on re-opening from lockdown, we need to make sure that it is in the best interest of the public and the environment. We need to make sure our water is clean to drink, our air is clean to breathe in, and our food is safe to eat. These are the necessities of making sure our environment and our health is maintained safe for now and for the future, said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “This is the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, so we need to make sure New Jersey moves forward on a green economic agenda. After we get through this pandemic and health emergency, we need to prepare for climate change.  If we can act now, we still have time to help reduce impacts of climate change and help New Jersey become fairer, equitable, and greener for all.”