The 56,651-square-foot property, built over the past year, is being listed for $18.9 million.
Investment highlights include a brand-new, 12-year lease, options to extend, new construction, annual 2 percent rental increases, and an established and well-known tenant.
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Business is booming for New Jersey Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin.
An attorney by profession, Coughlin was a low-key state lawmaker with a solo law practice and a handful of municipal clients in the years before he ascended to the third most powerful position in the Statehouse in 2018.
NJ SpeakerCraig Coughlin
No less meteoric is the rise of the law firm he co-founded as he lined up for that leadership post.
Established with a couple of well-known partners, Rainone Coughlin Minchello has seen explosive growth in the seven years since it opened its doors. Representing local governments across the state, the Woodbridge firm has earned more than $38 million from public contracts since its inception, with annual revenues that now place it among New Jersey’s top law firms with public business, financial disclosures show.
This year, Coughlin, a Middlesex County Democrat, marked a historic milestone when he became the state’s longest-serving Assembly speaker ever, holding huge influence over any legislation the chamber takes up. With the rise of his law firm coinciding with that power, good government groups call Coughlin’s financial ties troubling, saying they raise questions about whether he is profiting from his public role from municipalities seeking a friend in the speaker.
“Elected officials are there to serve the people, and not also to reap the benefits of doing so on the other side of things,” said Heather Ferguson, the director of state operations for Common Cause, a Washington-based public advocacy group. “You don’t need to make money both ways.”
In a prepared statement, the firm touted the experience of its lawyers in representing government entities and noted Coughlin’s work as an attorney predated his political career.
“We are proud of the firm’s 22 attorneys who have established significant expertise in the practice of municipal law,” the firm said. “We are equally proud of the trust placed in the firm by the bipartisan roster of mayors, councilpersons, commissioners, and executive directors that seek our advice.”
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Imagine an auto race with speed but no engine noise. That battery-powered vision is already here, with Formula E.
By Chico Harlan, Washington Post, April 23, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.
MISANO, Italy — The 22 racecars took their positions, shot off the starting line, and accelerated down a straightaway through the shimmering heat. The race was on — quietly.
The racecars rocketed past the grandstands, emitting nothing more than a mechanical whir. The tires hummed. Almost nobody in the crowd wore earplugs, as they might in Formula 1. As the cars zipped through the first few turns — 27½ laps to go — they sounded no louder than electric toothbrushes.
“It’s like whistling,” said Jeroen Bos, a motorsports fan from the Netherlands.
Creating an all-electric motorsport is a bold venture. Formula 1 and NASCAR have built big, entrenched cultures based on the appeal of classic full-throttle power. Even the famed motorsports catchphrase is an ode to combustion: Gentlemen, start your engines.
But Formula E, as the championship is known, is a study in the challenges — and potential — of the electric vehicle transition. In trying to make inroads with the sporting mainstream, Formula E is still figuring out how to market the idea of battery-powered racecars — and whether to play up its similarities to the gasoline age or the parts that are different.
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An estimated 2,548 barrels of carbon dioxide leaked from an Exxon pipeline in Louisiana on 3 April, triggering alarm among residents
By Nina Lakhani in Sulphur, Louisiana, The Guardian, Apr 2024 06.00 EDT
A major leak of CO2 from an ExxonMobil pipeline in Louisiana exposes dangerous safety gaps that should halt the planned multibillion-dollar carbon capture industry, environmental advocates say.
An estimated 2,548 barrels of carbon dioxide (CO2) leaked from the Exxon pipeline in Sulphur in Calcasieu parish on 3 April, triggering an emergency response and alarm among residents who live close to scores of polluting pipelines, petrochemical and fossil fuel facilities.
It took more than two hours to fix the leak, which is “unacceptable”, according to Kenneth Clarkson from the Pipeline Safety Trust non-profit.
“Any release of this size of carbon dioxide should be taken seriously, especially given the proximity to homes in Sulphur … The operator should have promptly known about the leak from the pressure loss and quickly closed the valves and, as reported, they failed to do that,” said Clarkson.
“There are dangerous gaps in the federal regulations that we hope will be addressed.”
CO2 – a greenhouse gas released by burning fossil fuels – is an asphyxiant and intoxicant, which in large quantities can cause injury or death by replacing oxygen in the air. Potent clouds of CO2 can hang in the air for hours, depending on the weather conditions.
About 5,000 miles of CO2 pipelines are currently operating in the US, which are predominantly for transporting the gas to oilfields where it is used to extract hard-to-reach oil – a process known as enhanced oil recovery. The pipeline running through Sulphur is part of a network stretching more than 900 miles through Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi, which ExxonMobile acquired from Denbury last year.
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Waste-to-energy company Covanta is rebranding as Reworld as it looks to tout growth in both its core business and emerging segments, the company announced Tuesday. Covanta has been under the management of European investment firm EQT Infrastructure since 2021.
“With this strategic evolution, we aim to redefine partnerships in waste management, focusing on converting waste into valuable resources through advanced technological applications,” Reworld President and CEO Azeez Mohammed said in a release. “The reimagining of our company underscores Reworld’s dedication to innovation, excellence in customer service, and a collective vision for enabling the reduction, efficient reuse, recycling, and recovery of diverse waste streams.”
In 2021, Mohammed became CEO of what was then Covanta, following the EQT deal. The $5.3 billion sale was contingent on several sustainability growth metrics, including a 25% increase by 2025 in waste recycled or reused. The company was the largest operator of mass-burn combustion facilities in the U.S. at the time of the sale, and it has grown since then.
Covanta’s portfolio expanded from 50 to 90 facilities since the EQT deal, bolstered by eight acquisitions. That includes a major deal last year to acquire Circon. The move doubled the company’s water services offerings and grew its geographic footprint in the Midwest and major markets like Houston.
In part due to those acquisitions, the company has also increased the waste it diverts from landfills from about 1.5 million tons in 2021 to 3 million tons today. According to a spokesperson, Its headcount has increased from 3,800 employees to 4,500. That growth pattern is putting the company on track to meet its 2025 sustainability goals,
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Identity Change Emphasizes Sustainable, Resilient, and Essential Nature of Recycling
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 18, 2024 – After 35 years as the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, ISRI today announced it is now the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA). The new name and logo were unveiled during the closing general session of ISRI2024 Convention and Exhibition in Las Vegas, an event that saw record attendance from the US and more than 70 countries for the organization’s major annual meeting.
“From everyday items to our essential infrastructure, recycled materials power the manufacturing supply chain that makes our economy stronger, our planet more sustainable, and our lives better,” said Robin Wiener, President of the Recycled Materials Association. “Our new name, the Recycled Materials Association, clearly and accurately describes who we are as an organization and who we represent. I am excited to unveil our dynamic new name and logo to stakeholders around the world.”
ISRI Outgoing Chair Brian Henesey said, “The Recycled Materials Association is the culmination of years of work in refining how we present our industry to the world. It has been an honor to Chair this organization through this endeavor and a privilege to be one of the ongoing chain of leaders working to make us more successful tomorrow than we are today.”
Recycled Materials Association Incoming Chair Colin Kelly remarked, “With the introduction of this new brand identity, we embark on an exciting future for our organization that reflects our evolution, our values, and our vision. This new name represents our dedication to rethinking how we approach recycling, pushing the boundaries of what is possible, and striving for a world where recycling is at the heart of sustainable development.”
The organization’s new identity includes a new tagline – Sustainable. Resilient. Essential. – which emphasizes the industry’s core benefits to society and attributes. The recycled materials industry is Sustainable – helping protect the environment. It is Resilient – providing materials that strengthen the economy. It is also Essential – by ensuring the things we need are there to make everyday life better.
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