Posts Tagged ‘shore’

Why are we still dumping on our shore?

Written by Mike Pisauro on September 9th, 2009 in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Labor Day is over and the shore season is over.  Over the last several weeks of this summer I took my family to the shore.  I love the shore. As a kid, I went to the NJ shore every summer with my family and I want to carry on the tradition with my children.  When I was a kid I do not remember seeing garbage on the beach.  I do not remember, at least until I was older, medical waste washing up on the beach.  When I was a child, I do not ever remember having a condom float by me as I swam in the ocean.  That is exactly what I saw a couple of weeks ago.

My children are not so lucky.  And that is a shame.   Over the Labor Day weekend, my kids picked up several pieces of garbage that had either been left on the beach by thoughtless people or had washed upon from the ocean.  To my pride they put the garbage in the garbage where it belonged.  This is what they and I saw as we took a short walk one evening (excuse the photography).

Garbage on the Shore 2Garbage on the Shore 3Garbage on the Shore 4

Around the same time I was looking at the garbage on the beach, 24 syringes washed up on the beaches of Long Beach Island over a few days period.  A news article ,written by Michelle Lee of the Press of Atlantic City, reported that LBI’s health officer believed that the syringes were because of combined sewer overflows and bad surf.

People need to stop littering at the beach and off their boats.  Government needs to upgrade combined sewer overflows that that garbage cannot be washed out to see.  Government needs to enforce the litter laws and anti-dumping laws.

Our coastal environment is too important to treat it as a place to dump our garbage.  It is too important to our economy.  It is too important to a tradition that my and many families in New Jersey have.  I do not want to ever have to explain to my child why a condom is floating past them in the ocean or that they have to watch were they walk on the beach so that they do not step on glass or syringes.  I want them to see and enjoy the beauty of New Jersey’s shore.Ocean and BirdOcean

NJ has new environmental legislation- Part I

Written by Mike Pisauro on January 16th, 2008 in Clean Up, Global Warming, Ocean, Recycling, Renewable Energy | No Comments »

The Governor has recently signed new legislation dealing with the environment. Some of it is good and some of it is not so good. The following are the bills he has signed over the last couple of days:

Electronic Waste Recycling Act. Generally this law requires that computers, tv, monitors and some other electronic devices are recycled and not thrown away.

Certification program for renewable energy. P.L. 2007 c. 264. The law requires BPU to set up a certification program for installers of renewable energy systems.

State Green Buildings. P.L. 2007, c.269. The law requires all new governmental building of at least 15,000 square feet to meet either the silver rating from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System or two globes from th Green Globes Program.

Site remediation notice. P.L. 2007, c.276. The bill requires those performing site remediation to provide written notice to the county health department and local health agency. Also these agencies and municipality to request a copy of the remediation action work plan.

Public notice for shore protection projects. P.L. 2007, c.278. Requires DEP to hold a public meeting for comments on shore protection programs once the feasibility study is complete.

NJ Coastal and Ocean Protection Council. P.L. 2007, c.288. For more info see link.

Net Metering. P.L. 2007, c.300. Provides net metering to not only residential but industrial and large commercial customers. Also increases that amount of energy produced from renewable energy from 0.1% to 2.5% of the State’s peak energy level before a utility may cease providing for net metering.

Recycling Enhancement Act. P.L. 2007, c.311. The law reasserts the State’s commitment to recycling and funds municipal and county recycling programs through a $3.00 per ton charge on solid waste facilities.

There are several more bills which I will write about shortly.

NJ moves closer to ocean protection with the Coastal and Ocean Protection Council

Written by Mike Pisauro on January 8th, 2008 in Ocean | 1 Comment »

Last night the Assembly passed A4332, that creates the New Jersey Coastal and Ocean Protection Council.  The Senate passed a similar bill back on December 10th.  Now the bills are awaiting the signature of the Governor.

In 1973 the New Jersey legislature passed the Coastal Areas Facility Review Act because, “certain portions of the coastal area are now suffering serious adverse environmental effects resulting from existing development activity impacts”  NJSA 13:19-2.   Unfortunately, CAFRA did not meet its promises and in 2003 and 2004 the Pews Ocean Commission and the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy both determined that our ocean and coasts are in critical condition.  For example the Pews commission found that:

       ·         more than 60 percent of our coastal rivers and bays are moderately to severely degraded by nutrient runoff.      ·         those species that we rely on commercially and recreational were in jeopardy from numerous causes.New Jersey’s coast is in the same boat as the remainder of the country.  Last summer saw garbage wash up on the shore, brown tides and fish kills.

The Coastal and Ocean Protection Council is the first step to making changes recommended by these Commissions and others. The Council will help DEP and other agencies coordinate their activities along the coast and in our oceans; to help formulate solutions to the problems that are facing this fragile, but important resource.  This Council’s work will not only improve our environment, but help enhance the economic viability of our tourism industry as well as the recreational and commercial fishing industry.  It is through the Council that we may begin to truly reach the goals set forth in 1973 with CAFRA, of stemming the, “continuing and ever-accelerating serious adverse economic, social and aesthetic effects . . . on the delicately balanced environment of that area.”