Ready for an $8,000-a-day NJ-DEP fine?

Some 950 businesses, local governments and other entities will soon be hearing from the state of New Jersey about environmental paperwork they have failed to update. And that failure could subject them to fines of up to $8,000 a day.

The NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) says that, as of October 1, 2007, it will begin taking enforcement action against parties that have entered into environmental clean-up agreements with the state but subsequently failed to submit mandatory written reports updating the DEP on the progress of those remediations.

You’d expect a large number of gas stations and some chemical plants, manufacturers and other industrial facilities to be on the list. And they are. But others appear that you might not expect.

Here’s just a small sampling of those among the 950 culled from just three counties:

The Atlantic City MUA water yard
Egg Harbor City
The Ventnor Fire Department
Elmwood Park High School
Horizon House Apartments in Fort Lee
Saint Mary’s Church in Rutherford
Home Town Laundries in Teaneck
Farmland Dairies in Tenafly
Bass River State Police
Northern Burlington Regional High School
Medford Lakes Borough
Mount Laurel Township
U.S. Army Training Center at Fort Dix
Tacony Palmra Bridge
Willingboro Shopping Plaza
Chatsworth Deli
Camden Lutheran Housing Corporation
The Ben Franklin Bridge
Goodwill Industries

For some on the violators list, the news will come as a complete surprise, because they no longer own the property in question. In an alert to its clients, the law firm of Riker Danzig gave the following example of such an instance:

“If a party received a No Further Action letter in the mid-1990s, for example, the NFA would not have included the Biennial Certification requirements. If that party later sold its property, then it would not have received notice from the NJDEP of the new obligation. Thus, a party in this position could be facing an enormous penalty without being aware it is in violation.”

Limited editorial reaction so far has ranged from supportive (Star-Ledger) to mildly critical (Gloucester County Times).

We imagine the phone lines at the DEP’s enforcement section are already ringing off the hook. But the news isn’t bad for everyone. The notices of violation no doubt will be a bonanza for environmental law firms and consultants whose panicked clients will be demanding quick responses to ward off or mitigate the size of possible DEP penalties.

Just think of all the individual case negotiations this will trigger at the DEP’s offices in Trenton. And you thought finding a parking spot there was difficult before.

Ready for an $8,000-a-day NJ-DEP fine? Read More »

Enviro-Events Calendar for NJ & PA

EnviroPolitics
Environmental Events Calendar

September 29
Moonlight Walk A three- to five-mile walk around Historic Whitesbog Village andits surrounding bogs. Learn about the ecology and folklore that makes this slice ofthe Pinelands special. September’s moon is the Harvest Moon – a visual treat forboth nature lovers and casual visitors alike. Meet at the Whitesbog Village General Store at 7:30 PM. Fee is $5 per person. Guests are advised to bring water and insect repellent. Light refreshments available. Registration in advance recommended; email WhitesbogPreservationTrust@comcast.net or call
609-893-4646

October 2
Recycling Makes Sen$e A workshop for towns, businesses & schools 7:30-9:30 a.m., Wild West City, 50 Lackawanna Drive, Stanhope Borough,Byram Township, NJ. Hosted by the Sussex County MUA and the Northeast Recycling Council. Do your recyclable materials end up the trash? Do you need a better waste management system? Do you want more information about hazardous items? If you answered Yes to any of these questions, you need to be part of the Towns and Business Reuse and Recycling Project. The workshop will include information tables, recycling container displays and a workshop toolkit. For information, contact Reenee Casapulla at 973-579-6998 x.107. or the SCMUAwebsite at: www.scmua.org

October 3
Recycling Makes Sen$e A workshop for towns, businesses & schools 7:30-9:30a.m., Hillside Park Hall, 146 Lake Cliff Road, Andover Township, NJ. Hosted by the Sussex County MUA and the Northeast Recycling Council. Do your recyclable materials end up the trash? Do you need a better waste management system? Do you want more information about hazardous items? If you answered Yes to any of these questions, you need to be part of the Towns and Business Reuse and Recycling Project. The workshop will include information tables, recycling container displays and a workshop toolkit. For information, contact Reenee Casapulla at 973-579-6998 x.107. or the SCMUA website at: www.scmua.org

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Post Your Event Here – No Charge – Open to All
Send information on your upcoming event to: Event@EnviroPolitics.com

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October 3
73rd Annual Tour de Pines Five consecutive single-day (loop) bicycle tours of theNew Jersey Pinelands. See http://www.pinelandsalliance.org/ for information and registration form, or contact (609) 859-8860 x11. Sponsored by Pinelands Preservation Alliance.

October 4
The Healthy House, RWJ Hamilton Center Health & Wellness. Join Lin Fox, chapter member, as she gives a lecture on principles of “green” homes at this conference. $5.
For more details, contact HealthConnection 609-584-5900

October 7
Pinelands Discovery Festival 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A day of discovery and environmental awareness. Exhibitors, artists, wagon tours and interactive displays that celebrate the NJ Pinelands. Great food and children’s activities. Parking $5. Historic Whitesbog Village, Route 530, Pemberton Twp. Sponsored by Pinelands Preservation Alliance (609) 859-8860

Full events listing for September and October at: Calendar

Enviro-Events Calendar for NJ & PA Read More »

A financial windshift for Delaware energy?

Eager to become the first northeast state to supplant a chunk of its fossil-fuel-derived energy with wind power, Delaware’s Public Service Commission has been all but flogging the state’s largest electricity producer, Delmarva Power, into a long-term contract with upstart wind farm developer, Bluewater Wind.

Bluewater is proposing to erect 150 wind turbines far enough off the state’s coast to be barely visible. The $1.6 billion project would provide 450-megawatts of power–an amount the company says is used by as many as 100,000 households in the state.

Negotiations between Bluewater and Delmarva have been progressing, but the utility continues to hedge. One concern raised by project critics has been Bluewater’s experience (it hasn’t built a major wind park in the U.S.) and its financial depth.

Both objections likely were dispensed with yesterday with the announcement that Bluewater is being acquired by international investment firm Babcock & Brown (ASX: BNB). ,

That’s a shot in the arm for the Delaware project and also could have implications for languishing off-shore wind proposals in New Jersey and New York. Bluewater had expressed an interest in both. Now, with Babcock & Brown’s financial backing, more serious attention will have to be paid to the young developer.

More to read:
Babcock & Brown’s press release on the acquisition
About Bluewater Wind
About its Delaware project
The News Journal story on the acquisition

A financial windshift for Delaware energy? Read More »

PA governor opens $15M biodiesel plant

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell has been trying for months to convince state legislators to adopt his plan for a $500 million fund to help develop an alternative energy industry in the Commonwealth. (See: Energy: A hot topic in NJ, PA and NY )

Lawmakers are debating Rendell’s plan and other energy proposals at a special session this week and on Wednesday, the governor was presented with a timely “photo op” to drive home the message.

Rendell called out “start your pumps” to launch operations at the new, $15 million Pennsylvania Bio Diesel plant in Potter, Beaver County.

“This is as important a plant opening as I’ve ever been to, probably as important as any of you’ve been to,” Rendell told a crowd of more than 100 guests, vendors, potential clients and politicians. “Folks, you’re looking at the future.”

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that:

“Biodiesel, a renewable fuel produced primarily from soybeans, is growing rapidly in popularity. In 1999, about 500,000 gallons of biodiesel were produced nationwide. Last year, about 325 million gallons were produced. Primary users are trucking companies and farmers.

The governor’s PennSecurity Fuels Initiative calls for companies to produce about 1 billion gallons of alternative fuel by 2017. It provides loan and grant incentives for biodiesel and ethanol producers, including a 5-cent per gallon reimbursement for the first 12.5 million gallons produced. “
Plant owner Patrick Copple will use a by-product of the biodiesel-making process–glycerin–to make grinding aids and additives for the concrete industry at Crete Technologies, Inc., a nearby plant that he also owns. He said he doesn’t yet have a buyer for the biodiesel he’ll be producing in a few weeks but he isn’t worried. He thinks he’ll be able to sell his cleaner-burning fuel for about the same cost as standard diesel and that should stimulate a sale.
A number of utilities, school districts and municipalities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey have been using a mixture of biodiesel and regular diesel in their vehicles and have reported few problems with the zero-sulphur fuel.
New Jersey Natural Gas Co. is using a mix of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent diesel fuel to power 32 trucks and pieces of construction equipment, including backhoes and towed compressors. Public Service Electric & Gas began using biodiesel to power vehicles in its diesel fleet in 2003.

Has your business experimented with biofuels or ethanol? We’d enjoy hearing from you. Just click on the “comment” line below and share your story with our readers.

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Energy: A hot topic in NJ, PA and NY

The great energy debate is just around the corner in New Jersey and New York and is already under way in Pennsylvania.

In Pennsylvania, the state legislature this week is holding a special session to deal with Governor Ed Rendell’s proposed $850 million Energy Independence Fund.

Rendell’s proposal would use $500 million of the proposed bond money to invest in clean-energy projects such as biofuel plants, solar and advanced coal technologies. $100 million would be made available to help Pennsylvania firms interested in expanding clean-energy production to attract private-sector investors.

Other money from the fund would reimburse homeowners and small businesses for up to half the cost of installing solar panels, pay for $100 rebates on residential purchases of energy-efficient air conditioners and refrigerators, and allow homeowners to install ‘smart meters’ -high-tech devices that help consumers target electricity use to times when the cost is lowest.

The governor failed to get his plan through the legislature in February and Republicans continue to raise questions about the size of the bond fund, just who will receive the incentive grants, and how the bond fund would be repaid. Rendell proposes to pay back the money over 30 years with a surcharge on consumer electric bills.

In the opening day of the special session on Monday, 15 new bills were introduced addressing various aspects of alternative energy investment and conservation. Yesterday’s issue of EnviroPolitics carried a description of the bills and links to full copies of the legislation. (For a 30-day free trial subscription, click here)

In New Jersey, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) are working on plans to help the state reach its ambitious goal of reducing greenhouse gases by 20% below 2006 levels (by 2020) and 80% below 2006 levels (by 2050). This would be accomplished by substituting clean energy (primarily wind and solar) for energy produced through the burning of fossil fuels.

In advance of the delivery of the governor’s plan to the Legislature sometime this Fall, the BPU in April adopted new regulations requiring 20 percent of New Jersey’s electricity to come from renewable sources by 2020. The new regulations also include a 2% solar set aside which is forecast to require 1500 MW. The governor’s office calls this “the nation’s largest solar commitment relative to population and electricity consumption.”

In New York, where Gov. Eliot Spitzer has called for reducing the state’s electricity consumption 15 percent below forecast levels by 2015, a report issued by the state’s Renewable Energy Task Force says New York is falling behind other states in developing renewable energy technologies.

One major obstacle, according to the report, comes from the complex and numerous local governments that have varying laws and restrictions that apply to installing new energy systems. New York also faces a competitive disadvantage, the report found, because other states provide substantially more funding for incentives to attract clean industries. For more on the report, check out this Business Week story.

Energy: A hot topic in NJ, PA and NY Read More »

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