Highlights

Today, the Governor delivered the State of the State address, highlighting change in New Jersey that WEC and many of our close partners have worked to enact over the past year. We were glad to hear the governor hold steady in his commitment to lead remediation in schools and in our homes, creating union jobs in the new clean energy economy with an emphasis on offshore wind, as well as his renewed commitment towards a millionaire’s tax and tax incentive program reform.  We are also pleased to hear the administration will focus on releasing a strategic and capital plan for the future of New Jersey Transit as well as a commitment to examining runaway income inequality and wealth disparity.  These efforts, both from the administration and advocates, have helped to begin transforming New Jersey into a safer, more equitable, and more sustainable environment for workers and working-class families.  However, there is more work to be done. In 2020, the Work Environment Council and our members would like to see the administration, and the New Jersey legislature take action on:  Improving transparency, accountability and safety related to trains carrying crude oil and other hazardous substances in New Jersey. Banning the use [...]

The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released a factual update on the June 21 explosion and fire at the Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) Refinery in Philadelphia. The update notes that a pipe elbow, which had corroded to about half the thickness of a credit card, appears to have ruptured in the refinery’s alkylation unit, releasing process fluid that included over 5,000 pounds of hydrofluoric acid, or HF. The leaking process fluid formed a large ground-hugging vapor cloud which ignited, causing a massive fire and explosions. Five workers were injured. Thanks to the heroic actions of four employees, Barbara McHugh, Sal Diberardo, Dave Farrell and Sean McElhinney - members of the United Steelworkers (USW) - thisa massive explosion on June 21st at the Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) Refiner in Philadelphia did not turn into a deadly catastrophe. McHugh a control room activated the rapid Acid Deinventory system which dumped HF into a drum away from the fire while Farell, McElhinney and Diberado shut down valves to stop fuel to the fire under firey conditions. All four workers were honored  at a ceremony on September 8 by the Philadelphia Firefighters. "McHugh's actions prevented a much larger and potentially catastrophic release of HF. [...]

A house in New Jersey destroyed by Superstorm Sandy. This coming October 29th will mark the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Sandy.  We can all remember the fear and anxiety that gripped communities as we faced winds up to 90 miles an hour and sea levels 14 feet higher than normal. The storm claimed  hundreds of lives and cost tens of billions of dollars in New Jersey, New York and up and down the East Coast. Health-related costs in New York and New Jersey alone were more than $3 billion. New Jersey is one of the fastest-warming states in the United States according to a recent analysis in the Washington Post. Temperatures here have increased by a full two degrees Celsius over the past century. That’s more than twice as fast as average in the lower 48 states – and the tipping point at which scientists say the impact of climate change becomes irreversible. Is New Jersey ready for the next Sandy? Our state faces an increased risk of hurricanes and other extreme weather events due to the dynamics of ongoing climate change.  Storms that used to happen once in a century will become commonplace, and we also face [...]

As worries over lead in drinking water continue to dominate, Gov. Phil Murphy announced a multi-pronged program Monday to bolster the state’s response to specifically addressing the existence of lead in public schools’ water. The steps announced include: Increasing inspections of school drinking water from the current once every six years to every three years; enhancing enforcement against schools that do not comply with testing protocols; and improving the state’s and the schools’ reporting of water results, including a central database kept by the state. “It’s a whole-of-New-Jersey problem, but it’s one we are here today to strengthen our efforts to overcome,” Murphy said in announcing the steps with Rep. Josh Gottheimer in Bergenfield. Read the full story at NJ Spotlight.

New Jersey advocates, community organizations and workers collectively demanded today that the Legislature pass meaningful reforms to the state’s economic incentives program following the release of a new report that found that New Jersey saw little return on its investments under the failed Economic Opportunity Act of 2013, which expired in June. A broad-based coalition including New Jersey Working Families, New Jersey Citizen Action, New Jersey Policy Perspective, New Jersey Work Environment Council, Workers United and 32BJ SEIU called on Trenton to adopt a series of six evidence-based reforms to its tax incentive program to ensure that future corporate subsidies benefit underserved communities and working families. “Not a dime of tax incentives should be given to any business that cannot, at the very least, guarantee the bodily safety of its employees,” said Brandon Castro of the New Jersey Work Environment Council. “Companies receiving incentives must provide affordable healthcare and assure safe and healthy working conditions. The EDA should also require onsite consultation with the NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development for any company in their first year of receiving awards.” Read the full story at InsiderNJ.com.

Edison, NJ —  Assemblywoman Nancy Pinkin and Assemblyman Robert Karabinchak joined with Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center and Jersey Renews to take electric car — and the promise of a zero carbon transportation future for New Jersey — for a test drive during National Drive Electric Week. Edison residents tried out cars like the Audi eTron, Chevy Volt, and Tesla Model 3 at Lake Papaianni Park, after local leaders and environmental advocates called for policies that ease the transition to cleaner, greener, electrified vehicle travel in New Jersey. “Electric vehicles are here now, and New Jersey needs to do more to make it easier to plug in,” said Doug O’Malley, director of Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center. “Electrifying our transportation sector is one of the most critical things we can do to fight air pollution and climate change. By taking steps to improve our EV infrastructure and accelerate the transition to electric transportation, New Jersey can create a roadmap for other states to follow. But we need to provide more resources and funding to communities like Edison to install more EV charging stations around the state.” Climate change is a major threat to New Jersey, with more [...]