ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ARE FRONT-AND-CENTER FOR COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE
NAIOP-NJ’s Regulatory Update Seminar highlights DEP’s top priorities, the LSRP program, budget questions and other key topics
EDISON, N.J., June 30, 2009 – New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Mark Mauriello headlined NAIOP-NJ’s “Regulatory Update Seminar” held at The Pines Manor in Edison. With the state’s fiscal 2010 budget nearing completion, he discussed his agency’s priorities for the coming year.
Mauriello noted that the DEP will have approximately $64 million less to work with compared to 2009 but that discussions to let go some 550 employees have been closed. NJDEP currently has 3,000 employees, compared to 4,000 a decade ago.
He also commented that the DEP will focus strongly on the new Office of Climate and Energy‚Äôs activity during the coming year. This includes the Global Warming Response Act, and working with the Board of Public Utilities and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority on everything from solar installations to off-shore wind farms. “A lot of stimulus money is coming down the pike for energy efficiency and renewable energy,” he said.
Mauriello expressed optimism for the Site Remediation Reform Act as well, and specifically for the Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) program. “We now have a bill that creates a new way to do work in the site remediation world,” he said.
Mauriello‚Äôs presentation was followed by two panels, including one that focused specifically on site remediation. Environmental attorney Dennis Toft of Wolf & Samson moderated that discussion and concurred that the LSRP program “holds promise for people to address contaminated sites in an orderly way.” Panelists included Len Romino, assistant director of NJDEP‚Äôs Site Remediation Program; Andrew Robins of Giordano, Halleran & Ciesla; and Jorge Berkowitz of Langan Engineering & Environmental Services.
Romino discussed specific changes resulting from the LSRP program. ‚ÄúEventually, every submittal to the department will be overseen and signed off by an LSRP,‚Äù he noted. ‚ÄúThe way DEP reviews cleanup will change. Instead of an upfront review, DEP will audit the work of the LSRPs. The department will no longer issue No Further Action letters. Final approvals will be issued by the LSRPs in the form of a document called the Remedial Action Outcome, or RAO.”
Robins cautioned that the legislation does not include how to deal with transactions and contracts already set up based on the current system. He noted that the legislation does include a covenant not to sue and provides an LSRP with powers that consultants did not previously have, particularly in the due diligence process.
Berkowitz explained that, in terms of function, the legislation calls for DEP to regulate sites and responsible parties. The LSRPs, themselves, will be regulated by a licensing board nominated by the Governor and approved by the State Senate. The board’s 13 members will consist of three environmentalists, six LSRPs, an academician, a geologist and members of the business community.
The second panel, moderated by William Harrison of Genova, Burns & Vernoia, focused on wastewater management planning issues. Panelists included Larry Baier, director of the DEP Division of Watershed Management; Christine Marion of the Morris County Planning Board; Anthony DiLodovico of CMX Engineering; and Dianne Brake of PlanSmart NJ.
Their discussion honed in on the DEP’s July 2008 ruling that appointed New Jersey’s counties as wastewater management planning agencies. As part of that ruling, counties were charged with completing comprehensive wastewater management plans by July 7th of this year. Baier said that, although there is a provision that the department can withdraw sewer service areas from plans that fail to meet the deadline, extensions are being issued by request.
Marion commented that working closely with the DEP has been a smooth process. While DiLodovico agreed that efforts to work collaboratively are strong, he outlined a number of concerns. These included the fact that so many counties are still working on their plans, and that 2002 data was used to generate the DEP’s draft server service area map, from which the counties are working.
Representing the land planning perspective, Brake also expressed apprehension. “Data does not make a plan,‚Äù she said. ‚ÄúData is information. Other agencies have not mapped what‚Äôs important to them.” Brake said that she would most like to see collaboration and the creation of a common vision among state departments that includes a myriad of considerations, including jobs, housing, transportation, open space, water and improving social/racial/economic integration.