As the new home of NJPIRG's environmental work, Environment New Jersey can be contacted regarding this news release.
TRENTON—The
report issued on May 2 by the Governor’s Panel on Offshore Wind outlines
the serious and growing nature of New Jersey’s energy problems and
affirmatively finds that offshore wind must function as one element of
a multi-faceted solution.
The
report’s recommendations move the ball down the court, promising
progress on the development of wind energy development in New Jersey in
the not-so-distant future. Most importantly, the report directs
Governor Corzine and his agency heads to move forward with plans to
develop a 350 MW (80 turbines) offshore wind farm immediately, and
construction as early as next year, making New Jersey a national leader
in the development of new renewable energy technologies.
Despite
the overall positive aspects of the report’s recommendations, in the
coming year, the Governor needs to ensure that the recommendations
related to data collection and analysis do not serve as a barrier to
forward momentum and action on the development of this important energy
source. While research is necessary and good, data collection can, at
times, be used as an excuse to delay policy decisions and tie them up
in bureaucratic red tape. As the governor proceeds in implementing the
panel’s recommendations, he should do so with a sense of high urgency,
and work to limit unnecessary delay that would put New Jersey behind
the eight ball in solving our energy problems.
The
report also does not give enough credence to off-shore wind’s ability
to solve our energy problems. New Jersey can stem a majority of our
growth in energy demand through the adoption of the right package of
energy efficiency and conservation policies. The development of
offshore wind, then, would free Governor Corzine and agency leaders to
make better choices about our energy sources, allowing them to:
• Ensure our state’s energy needs are met while retiring unsafe and dirty energy facilities.
• Reject the construction of expensive power lines to pipe dirty energy
into New Jersey from Midwestern coal plants, bringing more unhealthy
smog and soot pollution; and
• Ensure New Jersey is doing our part to reverse global warming, which
is the biggest threat to the New Jersey shore, other flood prone areas
of the state and to our quality of life in general.
The
development of offshore wind off New Jersey’s coast makes sense now
more than ever given the profoundly disturbing experiences our nation
has faced and continues to face as a result of our dependence on fossil
fuels. We are pleased to see the Governor and his agency heads moving
forward expeditiously.
