BILLYPENNGRAM for October 22, 2020
| Good time of year to stroll through Philly’s Washington Square West neighborhood (photo by @aimeebsiegel) Want to see your photo here? Tag #billypenngram on Instagram |
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First project moving under NY Renewable Energy Growth Act
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Northern New York Project to help avoid 1.16 million tons of CO2 emissions annually, save US$447 million in congestion costs.
By T&D World
The New York State Public Service Commission recently adopted criteria for identifying transmission projects that are needed urgently to meet the renewable energy goals of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). As part of the recent action, the commission also identified the New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) proposed Northern New York project as a high-priority project and referred it to the NYPA for development and construction in accordance with the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Protection Act of 2020.
“New York’s nation-leading CLCPA legislation calls for transformational quantities of renewable energy, which, in turn, requires smart new transmission to connect that power to customers,” said Commission Chair John B. Rhodes. “We have adopted well-designed new rules to specifically expedite bulk transmission investments that unbottle existing and new renewables. We also have designated the first investment under these new rules, the NYPA’s Northern New York project, to complete a critical link in our upstate grid and unbottle at least 950 to 1050 MW of renewable energy sources.”
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The Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Protection Act calls on the commission and the NYPA to work together when the commission determines that there is a need for expeditious action to solve a transmission need. Once such an urgent need is established, the act authorizes the NYPA to bring to bear its significant development capabilities and statewide transmission experience to ensure timely construction of the transmission solution.
The NYPA has already identified a multifaceted project that meets the criteria. The project now moving forward, known as the Northern New York Project, includes completion of the second phase of the NYPA’s 86-mile Smart Path Moses-Adirondack rebuild, rebuilding approximately 45 miles of transmission eastward from Massena to the Town of Clinton, rebuilding approximately 55 miles of transmission southward from Croghan to Marcy, as well as rebuilding and expanding several substations along the impacted transmission corridor.
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NJ Transit’s power-plant switch to green
By Larry Higgs | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
NJ Transit officials outlined a plan to find engineers and consultants with the expertise to design the $577 million Transitgrid back-up power system in Kearny in as green a way as possible, with a goal of awarding a construction contract in Dec. 2022.
However, a gas power plant is not entirely off the table, if a suitable design can’t be found, officials said.
Agency officials provided a road map on Wednesday night about how that’s going to happen, after hearing some praise from environmentalists who lobbied for a year and a half to scuttle a planned natural gas fired power plant.
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“We are so glad to hear your new commitment to renewable energy,” said Janet Glass of North Bergen, one of hundreds who opposed the plant. “New Jersey could be making history. Thank you for listening and I urge you to stick with it.”
The 140 megawatt generator is part of the larger NJ Transitgrid Power System, a $577 million project that would provide electricity to Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, parts of NJ Transit’s Morris and Essex lines and the Hudson-Bergen light rail in case of a power outage. The project is partly funded with $410 million in federal Hurricane Sandy resiliency funds.
The agency is taking several steps to follow through, voting unanimously Wednesday night to create a $3 million incentive to encourage companies with expertise and experience in renewable energy to participate.
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Why can’t Pa’s Scott Perry denounce QAnon?
| The ADL wants the central Pennsylvania Republican to do the obvious. You wouldn’t think it would be this hard. |
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| An opinion piece from the Pennsylvania Capital Star In a normal universe, the baseless and appalling QAnon conspiracy theory would be the plot to the worst action thriller you’ve ever seen. If you don’t know by now, QAnon adherents subscribe to the utterly bonkers proposition that President Donald Trump is heroically fighting against a diffuse and secretive cabal of devil worshippers and child molesters scattered across the most elite levels of government, business, and the media. To take it to its “Sharknado-iest” extremes, the theory also posits that a violent reckoning is coming, and that such high-profile pols as Hillary Clinton will be arrested and executed for their nonexistent role in it, according to the BBC. Care to share? Use icons at bottom to share this post with your friends But this isn’t a normal universe. It’s Donald Trump’s America, 2020. And QAnon adherents aren’t just harmless cranks. They’ve been legitimized by Trump. Some of their number are on the fast-track to Congress. Others have resorted to violence, with one notably sentenced to prison for opening fire in a Washington D.C. pizzeria because he wrongly believed the false argument that children were being held there against their will in a sex-trafficking ring. So, in what seems like a pretty basic ask, the Greater Philly chapter of the Anti-Defamation League would really appreciate it if U.S. Rep. Scott Perry, R-10th District, would disavow QAnon. And Perry, for reasons that defy all logic, absolutely cannot bring himself to do it, leaving ADL officials disappointed, but not entirely surprised. “For people like him and President Donald Trump to not call it out is just irresponsible,” Shira Goodman, the director of the Philadelphia regional office of the ADL, told the Capital-Star on Wednesday. |
| In case you missed it, Perry’s vote against a congressional resolution condemning QAnon has become an issue in his re-election race against Democratic state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale. Read the full story If you liked this post you’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed with the latest news, commentary and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation. |
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Multiple changes ahead for NJ recycled content bill
By E.A. Crunden, WasteDive
New Jersey’s recycled content bill, SB 2515, will be overhauled after an extensive meeting between lawmakers and the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Backers now aim to introduce a substitute bill by the next state Senate Energy and Environment Committee meeting in December, likely moving final action into 2021.
Sen. Bob Smith, committee chair and primary bill sponsor, said during a Monday hearing the new legislation will be “much more towards the California model than the way we started.” It would establish a 25% recycled content standards for rigid plastic containers (previously 35%) and a 15% standard for plastic beverage containers (previously 10%). Starting one year after the bill’s effective date, those levels would increase by 5% every three years until capping at 50%.
Support for recycled content minimums is rising in the waste industry and an initial version of the bill drew support from players like the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries. Association of New Jersey Recyclers (ANJR) Executive Director Marie Kruzan said she expected the substitute bill will address some pushback around issues like timeline and collection limitations.
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Momentum around minimum recycled content standards is accelerating at the state level, with increasing support from the waste and recycling industry.
Last month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 793 into law, making the state the first to enact recycled content minimums for plastic beverage containers. That law requires 50% recycled content by 2030 for relevant plastic containers, while preemptively barring similar local ordinances. This came after prior attempts were vetoed in California and Washington.
At the time of the California law’s passage, supporters said they would like to see similar efforts in Northeastern states, including New Jersey. But reception to Sen. Smith’s initial bill has been mixed, according to reporting by Plastics News. Environmental groups and recycling organizations are largely supportive of the legislation, but players in the manufacturing and packaging industries have said it would put an outsized burden on their sectors.
During the hearing, Smith said the new substitute proposal would account for some of the feedback offered by industry stakeholders and DEP officials. The new version includes 28 amendments, although recycled content standards for glass containers, paper carryout bags, plastic film bags, and plastic trash bags would be unchanged, and polystyrene loose fill packaging would still be prohibited. The state legislature recently passed a related ban on some of these items.
While the new bill’s text is not yet available, Smith listed a number of alterations including a mechanism through which DEP can adjust the recycled content standards through regulation. The new bill will also include a narrower set of exemptions from the standards for rigid plastic containers. Moreover, waivers would apply only for manufacturers able to submit documentation from a recognized, certified third-party expert or from a relevant agency.
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NJ top court addresses consumer protection vs. consumer fraud claims
By Gibbons attorneys Caroline E. Oks and Yolanda L. Bromfield
In a recent decision answering a question certified to it by the Third Circuit, the New Jersey Supreme Court held that claims brought under New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act (CFA) may be brought in the same action as claims brought pursuant to the Products Liability Act (PLA), provided each claim is based on distinct conduct.
In Sun Chemical Corporation v. Fike Corporation and Suppression Systems, Inc., the Court explained that it is the nature of the actions—not the resulting damages—that determines when claims may be brought under either the CFA or the PLA. The Court clarified that CFA claims may be brought in instances where a party alleges “express misrepresentations — deceptive, fraudulent, misleading, and other unconscionable commercial practices,” while PLA claims are reserved for claims based upon “product manufacturing, warning, or design defects.”
The claims in Sun Chemical arose out of the plaintiff’s purchase of an explosion isolation and suppression system from the defendant to be used to “prevent and contain potential explosions” in the plaintiff’s new dust collection system. Plaintiff’s federal court complaint alleged that on the first day it used the suppression system, a fire broke out in the dust collection system and while the alarm in the suppression system was activated, it was inaudible. Plaintiff alleged that, as a result, several employees were injured and Sun’s facility sustained extensive damage. Plaintiff alleged that the defendant violated the CFA by having “made oral and written misrepresentations about four aspects of the suppression system: (1) the suppression system would prevent explosions; (2) the suppression system would have an audible alarm; (3) the suppression system complied with industry standards; and (4) the system had never failed.”
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