New Jersey backs away from new brewery rules, dilly dilly

Daniel J. Munoz reports for NJBIZ:The Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control is indefinitely suspending enforcement of new restrictions it placed last week on the state’s craft breweries, ABC Director David Rible announced Tuesday afternoon.

The rules, issued Sept. 24, will be suspended while the ABC meets with craft breweries, alcoholic beverage license holders and lawmakers to hammer out new regulations, be it through the division itself or new legislation, Rible said.

“We want to make sure that we get this right,” Rible said in a prepared statement. “We are committed to supporting the state’s growing craft beer industry, while also balancing the concerns of other stakeholders and ensuring compliance with state law.”

Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Stephen Sweeney are vowing legislative action to overturn sweeping restrictions on craft breweries that the Alcoholic Beverage Commission put in place last week, joining a chorus of critical lawmakers and business owners.

Coughlin, D-19th District, said the regulations are inconsistent with the 2012 law aimed at fostering growth in the state’s nearly 100 craft breweries.

“I strongly believe the ruling by the director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control is inconsistent with the law intending to help foster craft breweries in the state and sets unreasonable restrictions on small businesses taking advantage of the opportunities to grow and prosper,” Coughlin said in a statement Tuesday.

Sweeney, D-3rd District, said the legislation would allow for the continued successful operation of the state’s microbreweries. He noted he and other lawmakers would work on legislation that would “clarify” state regulations on how microbreweries can operate successfully while maintaining their distinction from traditional C-license restaurants.

“Microbreweries in New Jersey have been very successful in capitalizing on new opportunities that have attracted a growing number of customers, created new jobs and contributed to economic growth in their communities,” Sweeney said in a prepared statement. “These microbreweries epitomize the best qualities of small business and we should be doing what we can to support them.”

At a Facebook town hall Monday, Gov. Phil Murphy cast doubt on whether the ABC’s actions were the “sensible step to take” and that his administration is looking into the regulations, though he did not specify how officials are examining the new rules.




New Jersey backs away from new brewery rules, dilly dilly Read More »

If seafood runs short, this ocean farm could save us



Chris Woodyard reports for USA Today:

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. – On a gray morning, hundreds of glistening black shells tumble down a chute to the deck of a retired Navy landing craft.

Mussels are peeled off heavy ropes, sorted by size and cleaned before five crewmen, seated around a table, inspect them for cracks or holes. The biggest and best are placed in bags, a bounty of bivalves destined for sale to restaurants and fish markets.

This farm-raised mussel business 6 miles off the coast of California’s Orange County marks a new direction for aquaculture by raising seafood in open ocean rather in bays, estuaries or other pens along the shoreline.

The Catalina Sea Ranch, a 100-acre collection of ropes and buoys, bills itself as the first commercial aquaculture operation in federal waters. It could be one of many to come.“Projects like Catalina, they are pioneers,” said Michael Rubino, director of the Office Of Aquaculture at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries division. “The technology is there and is rapidly expanding.”

Farmed fish, like salmon, trout and tilapia, have become commonplace. But the Catalina Sea Ranch takes a different approach.                                           

Harvesting mussels


By going offshore, the Catalina Sea Ranch aims to find cleaner water and a more stable environment with fewer water temperature fluctuations than shoreline operations would face. But it can be more expensive. And mussels, which grow quickly and live off plankton, aren’t broadly loved in America.

The project was a brainchild of Phil Cruver, a serial entrepreneur who has been involved in various ventures, with wind farms being among his most successful. He came to the idea seven years ago after being involved in an oyster bed restoration endeavor. Along the way, he made a couple of discoveries.



If seafood runs short, this ocean farm could save us Read More »

Interior Dept. relaxes rules on offshore oil, gas production

Reuters reports: 

The Trump administration on Thursday eased safety rules on offshore oil and gas production put in place after the deadly 2010 BP Plc Deepwater Horizon disaster, as part of its effort to slash regulations and boost the energy industry.

The Interior Department revised the 2016 oil and gas production safety systems rule, part of a series of regulations the Obama administration enacted on offshore drilling and production after the drilling well disaster that killed 11 oil rig workers, led to the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history and cost BP about $65 billion.

The final rule will appear in the federal register as soon as Friday, according to a document seen by Reuters.

It eliminates or changes some safety standards for when a well is producing oil or gas, such as requiring that independent third parties certify devices. Other changes involve when operators have to notify the government about beginning oil and gas production and what they have to report about equipment failures.

The Interior Department said in the rule that “certain provisions in that (2016) rulemaking created potentially unduly burdensome requirements for oil and natural gas production operators on the Outer Continental Shelf, without meaningfully increasing safety of the workers or protection of the environment.”

The rule supports the administration’s “objective of facilitating energy dominance” it said.




Interior Dept. relaxes rules on offshore oil, gas production Read More »

Denmark will help NY plan to add offshore wind energy

New York will work with Danish energy experts on its $2.1 billion plan to add offshore wind power to the state’s energy grid


Thomas C. Zambito reports for LoHud.com


New York will work with offshore wind experts from Denmark as it pushes ahead with its multi-billion dollar plan to add renewable sources of power to the state’s energy grid.


The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority announced Thursday it has agreed to work with the Danish Ministry of Energy, Utilities and Climate to come up with cost-saving strategies for developing offshore wind energy off the Atlantic coast of Long Island and the Rockaways.


The agreement with the Danish Ministry, known as a memorandum of understanding, will allow state officials to tap into the expertise of the world’s third largest producer of offshore wind energy.


“In our experience, offshore wind provides affordable, reliable and clean energy, while creating scores of jobs and growing the economy,” said Lars Christian Lilleholt, Denmark’s minister of Energy, Utilities and Climate. “I hope that our collaboration will help New York to develop its abundant offshore wind energy resources.”


The $2.1 billion tab for the offshore wind plan will be picked up by ratepayers across the state, while most of the energy produced will remain on Long Island. Residential customers could see increases of as much as 76 cents a month in their electric bills by 2020.


Denmark will help NY plan to add offshore wind energy Read More »

NJ enviros forego bird-in-hand plastic bag fee bill for harder-to-pass ban that adds Styrofoam and straws

NJ State Senator Bob Smith (center) encourages colleagues to support a ban on plastic bags,

By Frank Brill, EnviroPolitics Editor 

A month ago, New Jersey’s environmental community was split over legislation that sought to wean shoppers off single-use, plastic, grocery-store bags by charging a 5-cent fee per bag. 

 Bill supporters hoped the fee would convince consumers to opt for reusable, heavy-duty plastic or cloth bags that many stores offer for $1. 

 Environmentalists who preferred legislation banning the sale of single-use bags said their more dramatic approach was needed to respond faster and more effectively to plastics’ growing environmental threat.
  
The goal of both the fee and ban camps was to reduce the disposal of plastic bags that litter neighborhoods, show up on state beaches, in highway drains, streams, and in the ocean, too, where they are ingested by fish and contaminate the food chain.

Like this? Click to receive free updates

 When a fee bill landed on Gov. Phi Murphy’s desk in June, he was lobbied by environmentalists on both sides. Those favoring the fee approach believed that half a loaf was better than none. They recognized that the fee bill had passed the Legislature in part because the influential grocery store lobby (New Jersey Food Council) had dropped its long-standing opposition to a bag fee in return for a guarantee that the legislation would prohibit, town-by-town fees or bans. 

 Murphy eventually vetoed the fee bill and signaled that a more comprehensive approach was needed. By default, that meant that he would entertain legislation banning the bags.

 Proponents of a bag fee had feared that an outright ban might lose the grocers’ support and trigger wider opposition from the business community. They were right. 

At a three-hour committee meeting Thursday in Trenton, members of the Senate Environment and Energy Committee were besieged with arguments against–and for–an outright sales ban on plastic bags. The sponsor of that approach, committee chairman Bob Smith, had posted his bill, S-2776, which not only would ban single-use plastic bags but also the sale of plastic straws and Styrofoam.
 
***Related news coverage***

Ban bags and straws? N.J. proposal would be the strictest in the nation 
NJ takes the first step toward nation’s strongest plastics ban 

NJ plastics ban could be one of the toughest in the nation


 Smith said an aggressive approach was necessary to curb additional environmental damage. He cited statistics from recent studies that found an alarming increase in plastic products and plastic microbodies in the Passaic and Raritan rivers, as well as plastics counted during the annual Beach Sweeps conducted by Clean Ocean Action.

 He called on his legislative colleagues to respond to this “serious environmental and public health crisis.”

A small sample of the testimony

NJ Sierra Club’s Jeff Tittel (click arrow above for video) gave the legislation rare high praise and predicted that it will encourage other states to follow. 


Mark Daniels of Novolex, however, told committee members that  S2776 could jeopardize a $70 million investment that his company is contemplating for their plastics and paper factories in Elizabeth and Logan Township. 

The NJ Food Council’s Mary Ellen Peppard said her members appreciate that the bill would prohibit individual municipalities from establishing plastic bag fees or bans. She asked for clarification on several provisions in the legislation. When Chairman Smith asked if New Jersey grocers would support the bill if their recommendations were met, she diplomatically did not provide a direct yes or no.   


What’s next?
The bill was released on a 4-1 vote with Kip Bateman providing the one Republican vote necessary. It now goes to the Senate Budget Committee which is not as green-leaning as Smith’s. In casting the get-out-of committee vote, Bateman (perhaps anticipating an eventual party-line decision) said he might go the other way if the measure gets to the Senate floor. 

 One thing is sure. Senator Smith will have to make changes in order to lighten the collective weight of the bill’s current opponents. That’s common for bills as ambitious as this. 

 You can expect to see a lot of events at which bill supporters will work to increase public awareness. Opponents will work behind the scenes, reminding lawmakers of the state’s troublesome business climate. 

Where they line up on S2776:

 Support
Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions
Association of New Jersey Recyclers
Environment New Jersey
Clean Ocean Action
Clean Water Action
Food and Water Watch
Humane Society of the United States
New Jersey Environmental Lobby
New Jersey League of Conservation Voters
New Jersey Audubon
Raritan Headwaters
Rutgers University
Sierra Club

 Opposed
Alliance Center for Independence
Americans for Tax Reform
American Progressive Bag Alliance
Asian American Retailers Association
Chemistry Council of New Jersey
Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey
Dart Container Corporation
National Federation of Independent Businesses
New Jersey Gasoline, Convenience Store Association
New Jersey Retail Merchants Association
Novolex

 Seeking Amendments
New Jersey Business and Industry Association
New Jersey Farm Bureau
New Jersey Food Council
New Jersey Restaurant and Hospitality Association
New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce

 Like this? Click to receive free updates

NJ enviros forego bird-in-hand plastic bag fee bill for harder-to-pass ban that adds Styrofoam and straws Read More »

NJ takes first step toward nation’s strongest plastics ban


Scott Fallon reports for the North Jersey Record:

A bill that would impose the strongest statewide ban on everyday plastic products in the nation was approved by a Senate committee on Thursday.

The measure – S2776 – would ban plastic grocery store bags, Styrofoam food containers and plastic straws, all of which are often found in beach and riverfront cleanups across the state. It would also impose a 10-cent fee on paper bags at grocery stores.

“It requires New Jersey citizens to change their lifestyle,” said Bob Smith, D-Middlesex, the sponsor of the bill and chairman of the Senate environment committee.

The bill was moved forward by 4-to-1 vote. It is the first legislative move on the bill. It will go to the Senate Appropriations Committee and eventually to Senate President Steve Sweeney for consideration for a full house vote. It still needs to be heard in the Assembly.

The bill was hailed by environmentalists during a three-hour hearing Thursday who say it will significantly reduce plastic pollution in New Jersey.

Plastics have made up the vast majority of trash picked up each year from New Jersey’s beaches by the advocacy group Clean Ocean Action. A 2016 report by NY/NJ Baykeeper estimated that about 165 million pieces of plastic float at any one time from Sandy Hook to the Tappan Zee Bridge along with several other waterways that make up the NY/NJ Harbor Estuary.

Like this? Click to receive free updates


Business groups oppose the bill, saying it will hurt their members and consumers. Dennis Hart of the Chemical Council of New Jersey said the bill would especially hurt restaurateurs, who would eventually have to pay more for plastic alternatives.

The move on Thursday comes a month after Gov. Phil Murphy vetoed a bill that would have placed a 5-cent fee on plastic grocery store bags, signaling his support for an outright ban. More than a dozen municipalities, including Jersey City and Hoboken, have passed local plastic bag bans this year that will soon go into effect despite heavy lobbying efforts against a statewide ban.

California and Hawaii have bans on plastic bags. Some cities and counties across the country have banned straws and Styrofoam containers. New York City’s Styrofoam container ban goes into effect Jan.1.

Like this? Click to receive free updates


But New Jersey’s bill goes much further targeting three products.

The bill would allow restaurants to give plastic straws to people with disabilities, but advocates for that community says it needs to be made stronger. Smith said he’s willing to strengthen that part.

Smith also said he wants a small business exemption that would allow small grocers to apply for a year exemption to the bans if they can’t find any alternatives. Senator Kip Bateman, R-Somerset, suggested the 10-cent paper bag fee be phased in after the plastic bag ban goes into effect to lessen the sudden change to businesses.





NJ takes first step toward nation’s strongest plastics ban Read More »