By Raven Santana, NJ Spotlight News
New Jersey rang in the new year with a new minimum wage. Starting Jan. 1, most low-wage employees are getting a 36 cent increase to $15.49 an hour. The increase is part of a scheduled hike due to a bill that Gov. Phil Murphy signed in 2018 when the state’s minimum wage was $8.60.
New Year rings in a minimum wage hike for New Jerseyans Read More »
By Michael Winka
Over four decades, Winka helped develop solid waste and energy policies at the NJDEP and NJBPU
One of the many accomplishments of President Jimmy Carter was he created the Department of Energy.
On August 4 1977 he signed the Department of Energy Organization Act consolidating 30 separate energy offices and functions across the federal government, in response to the oil embargos at the time – His comments on signing the Act was “we need to operate government more efficiently – if we are going to be energy independent.
On October 1 1977 he “opened” the US Department of Energy – which is why Oct 1 id EE Day.
New Jersey had a Department of Energy as a separate Department but that was subsequently reorganized a Division of Energy Conservation in BPU which was further reorganized as the Department of Environment and Energy at NJDEP and subsequently re- reorganized back to it current structure at BPU and DCA.
President Carter is the reason the US is now a net exporter of petroleum and natural gas producing more than we use for the last 3 years. He is why the US can mine natural gas from shale at such a low cost. He installed solar panels on the White House in 1979 with a goal to make 20% of our energy from solar by 2000. (New Jersey is about halfway there if you only count electricity). But he also supported making more energy with coal. Better to burn a ton of coal – he said than to support importing oil.
Of course after the election President Reagan took the solar panels down, which started making energy a political football.
He is the reason you cannot buy an inefficient refrigeration or windows of hundreds of other EE appliance today. Why building are orders of magnitude more energy efficient today.
He is the reason electricity usage has been relatively flat in New Jersey since around 2007, saving ratepayer billions on their energy cost and avoiding millions of tons of CO2.
Michael Winka
Sustainable Lawrence
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NJ energy veteran recalls President Carter’s contributions Read More »
By Victor Mather, New York Times, Dec. 31, 2024 Updated 10:38 a.m. ET
A sweeping blackout hit Puerto Rico early Tuesday morning, plunging nearly all of the island into darkness on New Year’s Eve.
As of 10:20 a.m. Eastern, only 13 percent of Puerto Rico’s 1.4 million utility customers had power, according to the tracking page of Luma Energy, which supplies power to the U.S. territory. The company said it was activating emergency operations to restore power and described the blackout as “systemwide.”
Luma said on social media that “preliminary findings point to a fault on an underground line.” It said that it planned to restore power in phases and that “the entire process will take between 24-48 hours, conditions permitting.”
Josué Colón, the director of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, told Telemundo that he believed restoration would take several days.
Related news:
Most of Puerto Rico hit by New Year’s Eve power outage (CBS News)
1.3 million left in the dark (The Guardian)
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Most of Puerto Rico back in the dark on New Year’s Eve Read More »
By Mike Schuler, gCaptain
The U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has released a comprehensive guide for lithium battery shipping, addressing growing concerns about maritime transportation of electric vehicles and battery-powered goods.
The guide, released on November 21st, 2024, outlines new regulatory requirements for shipping lithium cells and batteries across all transport modes, including vessel shipments. Shippers must now comply with both domestic regulations and the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) code, depending on their shipment route.
Lithium-ion battery cell explosions are commonly caused by thermal runaway, a chemical reaction that can lead to the cell igniting and exploding. Thermal runaway can occur spontaneously if the battery is damaged, shorted, overheated, defective, or overcharged.
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New Lithium Battery Transport Guide Issued as Fire Risks Grow Read More »
By Ted Goldberg, NJ Spotlight News
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Army Corps cutting Jersey Shore flood control projects in half Read More »
By Jackie Roman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
UPDATE: I-80 eastbound reopened following the completion of emergency sinkhole repairs, the state Department of Transportation announced around 8 a.m. Monday.
Four days after a giant sinkhole took out the right lane of Interstate 80 in Morris County, resulting in massive traffic jams and winding detours, the heavily-traveled route is reopened.
The 40-foot-by-40-foot crater on the highway in Wharton was repaired and reopened to traffic around 8 a.m. Monday, the state Department of Transportation said. Officials previously said the reopening depended on whether the rainy weather delayed repairs.
Repair crews worked around the clock through the weekend to stabilize and repair the sinkhole despite wet weather, officials said. Aerial photos taken Friday showed the sinkhole filled and the road surface milled down to soil in preparation for repaving.
“I want to commend the outstanding efforts of the NJDOT and contractor crews that worked tirelessly to get Interstate 80 reopened quickly and safely for the motoring public,” state Transportation Commissioner Fran O’Connor said. “Given the extensive nature of the damage, it is truly remarkable the amount of work that was done in such a short amount of time.”
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The giant, Route I-80 sinkhole in NJ has been plugged Read More »
