Senate Passes Smith Bill to Establish the NJ Climate Change Resource Center at Rutgers

Trenton – Legislation sponsored by Senate Environment and Energy Committee Chair Senator Bob Smith, which would establish the New Jersey Climate Change Resource Center, passed the Senate today.

The bill would establish the New Jersey Climate Change Resource Center at Rutgers University to carry out interdisciplinary research activities that will help New Jersey prepare for and adapt to, climate change. The center would conduct research with a mission of advancing the efforts of government, public, private and the nongovernmental sector to adapt to a changing climate.

“Climate Change is an existential threat to humanity. Storms like Superstorm Sandy are warnings of what will come, and New Jersey is going to be one of the most heavily affected states in the nation. Our country, and the entire planet, will face conditions like we have never seen, and the massive fires in California and Australia are just the beginning,” said Senator Smith (D-Middlesex/Somerset). “Fortunately, New Jersey and many other states have already started lowering its emissions and increasing our resiliency in the face of the coming changes in the climate. For our state, a central statewide resource center at our state university will be an vital tool for New Jersey in the years to come.”

The Center would conduct a statewide climate change vulnerability assessment to identify populations and assets most vulnerable to a changing climate, as well, coordinate among academic institutions to ensure effective delivery of its findings to inform adaptation and resilience efforts across the state.

The bill, S-4162, was released from the Senate by a vote of 29-8.