EnviroPolitics Blog

Recycling company mines NJDEP for management talent

Valerie and Frank Montecalvo, who founded and oversee the ever expanding operations of Bayshore Recycling, don’t call a headhunter when adding to their management team. They look inside the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

NJDEP headquarters building in Trenton, NJ

It started with Sondermeyer

Gary Sondermeyer, a respected DEP veteran who had served as chief of staff for 10 years under five different commissioners and six New Jersey Governors, decided to retire from public service two years ago. Learning of Sondermeyer’s encyclopedic knowledge of environmental issues and regulations and his reputation for honesty and hard work, the Montecalvos convinced him to put his experience to work in the private sector.

Sondermeyer started out reviewing evolving recycling and energy
generating technologies for potential inclusion within the company’s sprawling, 52-acre Eco-Complex in the Keasbey Section of Woodbridge Township in Middlesex County. He must have done well because, earlier this month, he was named Vice President of Operations for the entire Montecalvo Group of Companies.

And continues with Micai

Today, the company announced it had plucked another gem from the department with the hiring of 33-year DEP veteran Thomas Micai.

Micai served in many capacities as he climbed the
ladder at the DEP including: Director of Land Use Planning, overseeing
the States Water Quality Management Plans and as the States Coastal
Manager; Director of Land Use Regulation, a permit program for the many
Land Use permits such as Highlands permits, Wetlands permits, CAFRA
permits, Waterfront Development permits, Flood Hazard permits, and the
States Tidelands program.

Earlier, Micai
helped manage New Jerseys Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program in
serving as a liaison between the NJDEP, Motor Vehicle Commission, the
Department of Treasury and the States Central Inspection Lanes
contractor, Parsons.

Tom started out his public service career in the DEPs Air Pollution Control Program, spending 23
years in staff and management positions including serving as Chief of
the Title V Major Facility Air Permitting Program.

In
his new capacity as Director of Compliance, Micai will assist the company
with regulatory matters in the build-out of its Eco-Complex and Energy
Campus, as well as help manage its expanding recycling services.

Bayshore Recycling’s Eco-Complex

Bayshore’s total operations include: recycling concrete, asphalt, brick, block and glass cullet into
aggregate materials (Class B operation); remediation of petroleum
contaminated soils (BSM); materials recovery of mixed construction and
demolition debris into secondary products such as landscaping mulch and
bio-fuel (Montecalvo disposal Services or MDS); full-service metals
recycling (Coastal Metals); recycling of consumer electronics, and
acceptance of dredge material at an existing barge terminal.

Beyond its sustainable recycling operations, the facility currently
receives 40 percent of its energy for its soil operation from 9,365
solar panels. The
Montecalvos say their blueprint is to add more solar, wind, tidal and biomass to
energy technologies to complete the progressive business plan.

When the Eco-Complex build-out is
completed, Bayshore is expected to operate 100% green businesses powered by 100%
renewable energy.

Sounds like a nice afterlife for good DEP folks, doesn’t it?

Recent posts:
PA’s top court takes a pass on local control of gas drilling

Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto?
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes
Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules

Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

Recycling company mines NJDEP for management talent Read More »

PA’s top court takes a pass on local control of gas drilling

The extent to which local counties and towns can set limits on gas drilling operations within their boundaries has been a gray area of the law. And it’s not likely to get any clearer soon.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Friday declined to hear an appeal of a case involving rules established by Fayette County for well sites, including a prohibition on their location within the flight path of airport runways or within 200 feet of homes.

“Penneco Oil Co., Range Resources and the Pennsylvania Independent Oil
& Gas Association filed an appeal of the lower court ruling, hoping
the state’s highest court would clarify what rules municipal and county
governments can apply to drilling,” the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported yesterday.

With the court declining to take up the appeal, the gray area of local control will spur additional legal challenges by drilling companies.

Industry mounts a two-front campaign

Deep-pocket gas companies have the advantage over budget-stretched local governments in financing a legal war, but they are not relying solely on their potential success in the courts.

They’ve also operating a second front in the state legislature where two “impact fee” bills making their way through the system would deliver a knockout blow to local zoning.

If adopted in their current form, Senate Bill 1100 and House Bill 1950 would strip municipalities of their zoning authority over drilling. The legislation
would give gas companies and the state DEP the sole authority to decide where gas
wells would be placed.

Tracy Carluccio, deputy director of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, says the result would be wells in residential neighborhoods, on preserved lands and
historic sites, next to schools and day care facilities and in close
proximity to municipal water reservoirs.

Gene Barr, the president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, takes the flip side of the issue, arguing that uniform regulations are necessary.

“More than 115 municipalities have adopted more than 145 ordinances,
including land-use limitations, road use restrictions, noise limits and
well-setback requirements. Many are designed to ban drilling activity, ” he writes in an op-ed piece today in the Patriot-News.

Action expected after January 17

The two bills, which vary in detail, will be the subject of conference committee action when the legislature returns to work on January 17.

Environmental organizations are planning a “welcome back” rally at 11 a.m. on that date in the Capitol Rotunda to press lawmakers to remove sections of the legislation that invalidate local zoning authority over gas exploration and extraction operations.

Care to add you views on this? Sound off in the comment box below. If one is not visible, activate it by clicking on the tiny ‘comments’ line.

Related:
Court inaction on Fayette rules clouds drilling oversight
Officials seek local control on gas drilling
Pennsylvania needs uniform Marcellus Shale rules
Experts tangle over whether fracking waste is making drinking water unsafe

Recent blog posts:
Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto?
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes

Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules

Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

PA’s top court takes a pass on local control of gas drilling Read More »

Enviros get a pecking at final lame duck session in NJ

** Updated at 6:40 p.m. on January 10, 2012**

Back in the good old days, environmental activists in New Jersey could basically phone in their order and the state legislature would deliver. Yesterday, in a state reeling from high unemployment, even higher taxes, and no easy fixes, the takeout window was closed.

Environmental organizations had a long list of bills they wanted passed and defeated on the final day of the State Legislature’s 214th Session. In in the weeks leading up to the final showdown, they diligently pulled out all the stops to advance their cause–news conferences, editorial board contacts, mailings to their members urging phone calls to legislators, and, finally, one-on-one contacts with lawmakers yesterday in the State House.

When the final votes were cast, they counted up several victories, but significantly more painful defeats.

Among yesterday’s environmental lobby victories

S-1954, a bill that the enviros opposed that would have permitted logging on state-owned lands, failed to be posted for a final vote in the Assembly.

A-2722, a bill that would have removed the authority of the DEP Commissioner to overrule the decisions of administrative law judges in contested cases, failed to be posted for a final vote in the Senate.

Among yesterday’s environmental lobby defeats

S-3156, which would delay implementation of tough new water quality rules aimed at
preserving more than 300,000 acres of environmentally sensitive land, passed both houses and was sent to the governor.

S-2371, a bill designed to support the state’s solar energy installation industry by requiring utilities to increase their purchases of energy produced from solar, failed to be posted for a vote in the Senate.

A-3782, a bill restricting use
of lawn care pesticides at child care centers, and certain schools,
playgrounds, and recreational fields, failed to be considered in the Assembly.

A-4279, a bill revising renewable energy requirements under the “Electric Discount and Energy Competition Act” failed to be considered in the Assembly

In addition, the Legislature ignored SCR 164 that sought to override Governor Christie’s decision to remove the state from the regional greenhouse gas compact, RGGI.

Also failing to pass was
SCR 239, a resolution declaring the
Department of Environmental Protection’s Waiver Rule inconsistent with
Legislative intent. The Sierra Club had called the waiver “one
of the most anti-environmental rules that have ever been proposed.

In a coup de grace, the Senate and Assembly agreed to implement Governor Christie’s recommended changes to the fracking-ban bill, S-2576, making it a one-year instead of a permanent ban. The enviros had called for an total override of the governor’s veto. (Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto?)

Recent blog posts:
Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto?
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes
Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules

Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

Enviros get a pecking at final lame duck session in NJ Read More »

Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto?

The Democratic leadership in the New Jersey Senate will attempt an override vote today of Gov. Chris Christie’s conditional veto of a bill that bans the controversial hydraulic fracturing (fracking) technique used in natural gas drilling.

In June, the Legislature passed S-2576 which would impose a permanent ban on fracking in New Jersey. Two months later, the governor returned the bill to the Legislature, agreeing to sign it if it were amended to make the ban apply for one year only. That, he said, would give the federal departments of Energy and Environment Protection time to complete ongoing studies of the drilling method.

The Legislature took no action on the governor’s conditional veto until a coalition of environmental groups, who do not want a ban of limited duration, called last week for an override attempt at today’s final meeting of the current legislative session.

If the override vote fails–as is almost assured–there will be no fracking ban of any duration in New Jersey.

Why would the environmentalists not settle for a one-year ban and seek later to extend it?

Because banning fracking in New Jersey–where there is little natural gas to be exploited–is not the point.

The point is to raise public awareness of potential environmental dangers posed by fracking and to build pressure on the Christie Administration to take hard line on fracking regulations that the regional Delaware Regional Basic Commission is attempting to adopt.

When the override vote fails, due to an insufficient number of Republican votes, activists will get to paint the Republicans and the Republican governor as ‘anti-environmental.’

Then they will quickly reintroduce the bill in the Legislature’s 215th Session which opens tomorrow. That will keep the fracking issue alive and available for political re-drilling in the months ahead.

Here’s a full copy of the legislation and the governor’s conditional veto message.

Do you agree? Disagree? Tell us what you think in the opinion box below. If one is not visible, click on the tiny ‘comments’ line to activate it.

Recent blog posts:
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes
Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules

Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project
Philadelphia now recycling milk & juice containers, too

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

Will the NJ Senate override Christie’s fracking ban veto? Read More »

NJ solar energy support legislation faces final vote today

A bill to help stabilize New Jersey’s solar energy industry is in place for a final vote in Trenton today but it faces an uncertain future should it make it to the desk of Gov. Chris Christie.

The record of solar energy system installations in New Jersey has been stellar ( #2 in the nation). But recent developments pose enough of a threat to the thriving economic sector to convince legislators that additional help is needed (Tinkering with solar energy success in New Jersey)

Requiring the state’s electric utilities to purchase more solar-produced energy (S-2371) is the key bill in the legislative rescue mission but opposition has been mounting in recent weeks from energy-intensive businesses that say they will be hurt by solar energy’s higher costs.

“What the solar developers are asking for is a bailout,” said Stefanie Brand, the state’s public advocate for utility customers. “They want to get the benefit of the system,” Brand said. “And they need more money than the market will give them.”

Governor Christie has expressed concern on numerous occasions about how high energy costs discourage economic development. At least one report says the governor will veto the bill if it is approved.

Today is the final day of the current legislative session. If the bill fails, it would have to be reintroduced in the new session that opens on Tuesday and again make its way through committee hearings and floor votes in both the Senate and Assembly.

See the following stories for details:
Tinkering with solar energy success in New Jersey
Utilities face steep solar demands
No Easy Solutions for the Solar Sector
New Jersey Assembly Committee Passes Solar Legislation

Recent blog posts:
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes

Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules

Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project
Philadelphia now recycling milk & juice containers, too

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

NJ solar energy support legislation faces final vote today Read More »

Tinkering with solar energy success in New Jersey

New Jersey saw the installation of more
solar systems in the year of 2011 alone than in the entire prior decade. By June, it could hit a projected solar capacity of 702 megawatts–an amount at least 133 percent higher than a
legislatively mandated targets.

NJ Spotlight‘s Tom Johnson writes today that:

“Those projections easily exceed the so-called state renewable
portfolio standard for solar — a requirement that steadily ramps up how
much solar electricity must be provided to customers — and are
expected to hold until the year 2014, according to the consultant’s
analysis.”

Time to break out the solar champagne? Hmm, maybe not.

In Solar Megawatts Continue to Climb, Amid Concerns About the Health of the Sector, Tom also tells us about new factors that have led some to fear an upcoming crash in the solar market.

They include a huge drop in the prices of solar renewable energy
certificates (the primary means of financing installation of solar
panels), a reversion of a federal credit from an
upfront cash grant back to a credit this year, and the
elimination of an accelerated federal depreciation for solar systems.

“Worried about those issues, the state is exploring numerous options
to remedy the drop in prices for the solar certificates. While not
agreeing on the details, both legislators and the state Board of Public
Utilities have embraced the idea of accelerating how much solar energy
should be supplied to customers by power generators, although how long
that should occur is still under discussion.

“In addition, the state is looking at extending utility-sponsored
solar loan programs that help residents and businesses put solar panels
on their homes and facilities.

Among numerous pieces of legislation designed to keep New Jersey’s solar future shining are the three bills below that will be considered this morning at 10 in the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee.

A-3731 Quijano, A. (D-20); Gusciora, R. (D-15)

Requires that contracts by non-utility load serving
entities to purchase solar renewable energy certificate shall extend for a term
of 15 years or longer.

A-4226 Chivukula, U.J. (D-17); Benson, D.R. (D-14)

Limits eligibility for solar renewable energy
certificates; changes certain conditions related to solar renewable portfolio
standards requirements.

S-2371 Smith, B. (D-17)

Accelerates solar renewable energy portfolio standards. Related Bill: A-3731
Interested in the committee discussion? You can listen to hearing live or catch it later

*** Use the signup form in the upper right column to receive free email blog updates ***

Related:
Solar shining brightly in US and NJ, not so much in PA
New Jersey mayor welcomes solar farm over housing
Sun setting on solar industry in PA? Who’s to blame?
NY loses out on $300M solar plant but still picks up jobs
NJ’s solar growth confronts difficult land-use issues

Recent blog posts:
Natural gas fracking has new PR problem – Earthquakes

Federal court freezes EPA cross-state air pollution rules
Time runs out on Delaware’s offshore wind project
Philadelphia now recycling milk & juice containers, too

In NJ, a clash over control of environmental regulations

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Like this post? You’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics
Try it free for 30 days! No obligation. Cancel anytime with one click

Tinkering with solar energy success in New Jersey Read More »