Greencitynew

Below are summaries of recent news stories about the environment in New Jersey. If article is a major daily paper the link to NJ.Com is provided, to obtain full article you'll need to search for the specific newspaper and the article and may have to pay a fee.

NJTPA Funds Clean Construction Equipment in Urban Areas
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
NEWARK – The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) Board of Trustees unanimously approved $800,000 on Monday to retrofit off-road construction equipment such as bulldozers, graders and pavers with pollution control devices that will reduce diesel emissions.
The funding will support Phase 1 of New Jersey’s Clean Construction Program, which will allocate a total of $2.5 million to retrofit 175 pieces of equipment being used for state-financed projects in urban environments. In April, Gov. Chris Christie signed an executive order establishing the program to improve air quality in densely populated urban areas, where residents are disproportionately exposed to emissions from construction sites.
http://njtoday.net/2011/11/16/njtpa-funds-clean-construction-equipment-in-urban-areas/

Trenton Ranks 20th in Nation for Smog
Saturday, November 19, 2011
By Bridget Clerkin/For The Times
City residents are at a greater risk of exposure to pollution than people who live in neighboring towns with higher annual incomes and lower rates of minority residents, according to numbers compiled by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
According to the data, the higher the percentage of minority residents and the lower the annual household income of residents in an area, the more pollutants can be found there.
NJ.com

N.J. works to map cumulative impacts of pollution in neighborhoods
November 22, 2011
By Carolyn Beeler, Newsworks
Cities have long contained neighborhoods where factories and other polluting facilities are clustered together. Residents in places such as Chester and Camden bear more than their fair share of pollution.
Joni Sampson argues her neighborhood in Trenton, though it lacks major facilities like incinerators and refineries, is among them.
http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/flexicontent/item/30185-nj-works-to-map-cumulative-impacts-of-pollution-in-neighborhoods

From ‘owl prowls’ to attacks on squirrels
Bayonne group celebrates nature in urban environment
By Kate Rounds, Community News Correspondent
Nov 23, 2011
The talk is of badgers, muskrats, birds, fish, snakes – and downsizing. Sound incongruous? Not for the three women who met in Bayonne’s Sister Miriam Teresa Park recently to talk about their passion.
They are women of a certain age who have been “downsized” at work, so they turned to an avocation they loved: Observing nature.
Pat Hilliard, Susan Hill, and Joan Brunner are members of the Bayonne Nature Club, which was founded about three years ago by Hilliard and her husband Mike Ruscigno.
Hudson Reporter - From ‘owl prowls’ to attacks on squirrels Bayonne group celebrates nature in urban environment

EPA Funding to Pay for Cleaner Engines on NJ-NY Ferries
Friday, December 2, 2011
NJTODAY.net
NEW YORK, N.Y. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is helping to reduce air pollution in the New York metropolitan area by providing the New Jersey Clean Cities Coalition with $896,838 to replace 21 engines on eight ferry and excursion boats that operate between New Jersey and New York with cleaner technology.
The clean diesel projects will improve air quality in urban areas of New Jersey and New York where asthma rates are high. Older diesel engines generate significant amounts of fine particles, nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide, which are released into the air and can make people sick.
http://njtoday.net/2011/12/02/epa-funding-to-pay-for-cleaner-engines-on-nj-ny-ferries

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

Newark Renaissance Trees Program

The Newark Renaissance Trees Program (NRTP) is a community-based reforestation effort that began in 2006 in the City of Newark. Created to increase the tree canopy, improve the environment, and enhance the quality of life in NJ’s largest city, the NRTP has planted 1,500 trees. More than 14,450 square feet of concrete have been removed, improving storm-water management and promoting a healthier community forest. Residents apply for a neighborhood tree planting, agreeing to plant and maintain the trees. Want to bring trees to your neighborhood? Download the NRTP application.