All Big Mac outlets in Canada to disappear
It’s true. All McDonald’s Restaurants in Canada will disappear (so to speak) on March 29. Dan Bingham has the details in his Canpages blog.
All Big Mac outlets in Canada to disappear Read More »
An oil spill grows in Brooklyn
Pop quiz:
What’s the largest oil spill ever in North America?
Answer:
The 11 million gallons of oil that spilled into Alaska’s Prince William Sound 19 years ago when the drunken skipper of the Exxon tanker Valdez piloted the huge ship into the rocks. Right?
True, that was the largest single oil spill into surface waters. But a plume of oil in New York City, apparently in the making for half a century underneath and around the city’s Newtown Creek, is estimated to be as large as 17 million gallons or more.
In fact, a report last year by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency suggested that the Newtown spill could be as much as three times larger than the Exxon Valdez disaster.
The scenic Manhattan skyline shimmers above oil-polluted Newtown Creek, an industrial waterway separating Brooklyn’s Greenpoint neighborhood from the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens.
National Public Radio’s web site has an interesting story and audio report on the spill and current efforts to clean it up.
For the latest on a continuing Exxon Valdez court suit, check out NPR’s Supreme Court Hears Exxon Case.
An oil spill grows in Brooklyn Read More »
So you want to put a solar panel on your condo…
1. You live in a condominium in New Jersey.
2. You’re alarmed by the rising cost of your electric bill.
3. You heard that the state is helping pay the cost of installing solar panels on the roofs of some homes and businesses.
4. You figure this is one way to reduce your energy costs and help the environment.
5. But you’ve also heard that others, like you, have run into major roadblocks when trying to get permission from their condo association boards for the installation of a solar panel installation.
Did you know that a recent change in state law, prompted by complaints from condo owners, now grants you the right to erect solar panels on the roof of your individual unit?
Sounds great, right?
Hold on, partner. As always, it pays to read the fine print.
Jonathan H. Katz outlines the new law’s opportunities–and a crucial limitation–in his post “Here comes the sun…” in Stark & Stark’s New Jersey Law Blog.
So you want to put a solar panel on your condo… Read More »
NJ-DEP’s busy alerting–and enforcing–in Spring
Spring is here and the enforcement staff at the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has emerged from its winter den.
So far in the month of March, the DEP has already issued four compliance alerts. If you don’t want to be bitten, you’d better check them out:
DEP Develops Guidelines for Proper Disposal of Household Medication
Smoke from Outdoor Wood Boilers ProhibitedAnd if you’re tempted to think these folks are all growl and no bite, take a look at the lengthy chart of enforcement actions commenced or completed in just the past 14 days.
Sure, it contains dozens of notices of violations–and many may prove to be minor. But, if you work your way down the entire chart, you’ll see some significant fines and settlements, including:
- A $20,000 administrative penalty against Forman Glen, Mullica Twp.
- A $10,000 settlement agreement with Newark International Airport
- A $11,250 civil administrative penalty against DuPont Chambers Works, Pennsville
- A $17,500 settlement agreement with Clean Venture, Inc. in Elizabeth
- A $45,000 administrative penalty against Peters Scrap Yard in Trenton
- A $50,000 administrative penalty against JNC Materials in Carteret
- A $250,000 administrative consent order against Chart Corp, Inc in Paterson
And that’s just the last 14 days!
NJ-DEP’s busy alerting–and enforcing–in Spring Read More »
Environmental Business News in NJ, PA & NY
Tip #1: EnviroPolitics, a paid-subscription, daily newsletter, provides free daily updates of environmental business news in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and beyond. Check out the site and add it to your favorites list. It’s available 24/7 at: Enviro-Business.
Tip #2: More conveniently, you can sign up to receive free alerts when the site is updated. To get on the alert list, simply send a blank email to: enviro-biznews@aweber.com
Tip #3: Get your company’s or organization’s environmental news published in EnviroPolitics. You don’t have to be a subscriber to the newsletter to take advantage of this free service. Send your information to: envirobusinessnews@enviropolitics.com
If you’re not in charge of public relations at your organization, pass this tip on to the person who is. They’ll appreciate the referral.
Environmental Business News in NJ, PA & NY Read More »
Why rising gas prices will hurt Jersey less
It may come as small comfort to residents of the Garden State, but steadily rising gas prices will have less of an effect in New Jersey than elsewhere in America.
That’s what the smart-growth organization, New Jersey Future, tells us in their most recent issue of Future Facts.
For the first time in years, they say, the statistics indicate that Americans are buying less gasoline and driving fewer miles. But gas prices are likely to continue to rise.
So, why are New Jerseyans likely to suffer less?
Check out Future Facts for the group’s answer.
Why rising gas prices will hurt Jersey less Read More »
