WEC in the News

The New Jersey Senate Transportation Committee approved an oil train transparency bill on Monday, reviving an effort that had been stymied by former Gov. Chris Christie. The legislation, S-1883, would require railroads to develop oil spill response plans in case of a derailment. The bill, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, D-Teaneck, would also require more transparency from railroads about their shipment of flammable liquids through the state. The states surrounding New Jersey have made the routes and estimated volumes of oil train traffic publicly accessible when compelled by public information requests from news organizations. Effectively, the public already [...]

Bloomfield Mayor Michael Venezia joined the mayors of Jersey City, Montclair, Newark, Passaic, Morristown, and Plainfield, to call for statewide legislative action to extend coverage to all New Jersey workers; Each of these municipalities have earned sick day policies in place. "Ensuring that all workers in New Jersey have access to earned sick days is a common sense policy to guarantee working families have options when a breadwinner needs time to recover from an illness or injury; allowing workers time off to recover while sick also protects the rest of us by keeping germs out of the workplace," said [...]

Two-thirds of low-income school districts in New Jersey don't have adequate space to serve their students, according to a report by the NJ Department of Education (DOE). "The report makes clear the enormous unmet needs in the SDA districts, and the continued failure of the current administration to address overcrowding and educational adequacy," said Jerell Blakeley, campaign organizer with the NJ Work Environment Council and coordinator of the Healthy Schools Now campaign. Read/Listen to the full story on WNYC.

Climate change is happening in New Jersey, and some of its impacts are already occurring: warmer summers, more days of extreme rainfalls, and increased frequency and intensity of floods due to rising sea levels. Hoping to kick off a statewide dialogue to fashion a comprehensive strategy for climate-change policy, Rutgers University and the New Jersey Climate Adaption Alliance gathered thought leaders at Duke Farm yesterday to begin hashing out strategies to deal with global warming and its consequences. “It is beginning to affect public health here in New Jersey,’’ Fatton said, adding the most vulnerable populations [...]

  In August 2010, Gov. Chris Christie signed the Offshore Wind Development Act and promised a commitment to offshore wind development in New Jersey. Seven years later, proponents of wind energy say the time for stalling is over. “For too many years, mid-August has become a bittersweet anniversary for New Jersey,” said Doug O’Malley, director of Environment New Jersey. “That time is about to end.” On Wednesday, before the backdrop of several large wind turbines that power the Atlantic County Utilities Authority’s wastewater treatment facility, the environmental coalition Jersey Renews held a panel conference to discuss advancing offshore wind [...]

  Gov. Chris Christie refused to sign a bill Thursday that would provide local emergency responders with more information on the scores of trains hauling volatile crude oil through New Jersey, saying it could become a security threat. The measure, which was supported by firefighters, labor groups and environmentalists, required rail companies hauling hazardous materials to provide emergency response and cleanup plans with the state Office of Emergency Management. The state would then have to share those plans with county and municipal emergency personnel along rail routes like the 11 Bergen County towns where millions of gallons of oil pass through every week. [...]