Fill It Up Clean: Clean Fuels In New Jersey

New Jersey legislation intended to reduce carbon intensity of transportation fuels

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 21:40:15 GMT

Bill Would Reduce The Largest Source Of Pollution In The State

New Jersey legislation is intended to reduce the average carbon intensity of transportation fuels. Adoption of the rule would create the first low-carbon fuel standard on the East Coast.

The New Jersey legislative pursuit would establish a low-carbon transportation fuel standard program. Similar programs are already in place in California and Oregon.

New Jersey's Air Quality Crisis

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Mon, 20 May 2024 19:43:06 GMT

An Inconvenient Threat To Our Health We Can No Longer Ignore

To anyone who has lived in New Jersey for any length of time, you’ve come to understand that the state is known for its poor air quality just as much as it’s known for its beautiful shoreline, institutions of higher learning, and as the birthplace of some of America’s most famous scientists and entertainers.

Unfortunately, the biggest blemish on our state doesn’t appear to be improving much, according to the recent annual “State of the Air” report from the American Lung Association.

Not only did New Jersey fare poorly against other states, some of our counties had among the worst air pollution in the nation. Bergen and Mercer counties, in particular, were given "F" grades for ozone pollution, and Monmouth County barely scraped by with a "D." This isn't just a bad report card; it's a red alert for public health.

The Ground Zero of Pollution: Bergen and Mercer Counties

Crisscrossed by major highways, Bergen County residents breathe in a toxic stew produced by the exhaust of emissions from heavy diesel trucks that dominate its roads, the relentless activity of nearby seaports, and the non-stop operations at Newark Liberty International. These aren't just minor contributors; they are the primary villains in our pollution narrative.

Mercer County tells a similar tale of woe. Here, where two-thirds of the population are people of color, the "F" grade in ozone pollution is a legacy of redlining and environmental injustice, manifesting itself in elevated rates of asthma, lung cancer, and COPD. The link between these health issues and the air they breathe is irrefutable and tragic.

Monmouth County: The Struggle for a Breath of Fresh Air

Not far behind, Monmouth County's "D" grade in ozone pollution is hardly a consolation. Like its neighbors, Monmouth is plagued by the consequences of proximity to industrial activities and major transportation routes. The air here carries a cocktail of pollutants that residents inhale every day, leading to long-term health consequences that are impossible to ignore.

The Real Culprits: Industrial Emissions and Transportation Fuel

While personal vehicles contribute to ozone formation and particulate matter pollution, and tailpipe emissions from sitting in traffic contribute to our air quality problem, drivers in New Jersey are emitting 10 million fewer tons of CO2 each year than they did two decades ago. In fact, New Jerseyans emit far less CO2 per person than the national average.

The real culprits are the industries and large-scale transport operations that treat our air like a dumping ground. While residential and commercial emissions from New Jerseyans are one-third lower than the rest of the country, transportation and industrial emissions are one-third higher.

How To Reduce Pollution From Heavy Duty Transport & Industry

The common link between heavy duty transportation like shipping, trucking, and airlines is petroleum-based diesel fuel.

Newark Airport has the 7th highest diesel particulate emissions among our nation’s airports, and the Port of New Jersey, the largest seaport on the East Coast, emitted over eight million tons of source air pollutants in 2019, the most recent year statistics are available, mainly from cargo ships belching diesel bunker fuel while sitting in port and trucks idling while awaiting cargo to be loaded on to their beds for destinations around the country.

Then there’s the New Jersey Turnpike, where trucks rumble through our state on their way to places from Portland, ME to Miami. As you can see in the image, most of New Jersey’s worst air quality falls along I-95’s north-south corridor.

Reducing Air Pollution Requires A Cleaner Fuel

Whether you are a commuter in a passenger vehicle, a truck driver, or an airline owner, you’ve been forced to use a fuel that’s harmful to your health and to our planet for the last hundred years.

Why? The oil industry’s monopoly. They control the supply, price, and distribution system.

Car and truck drivers and airplane passengers have no choice. However, competition from cleaner fuels is becoming a reality.

Millions of gallons of greener diesel made from used cooking oils, fats, and greases are being produced in states that have enacted clean fuel standards, which forces oil companies to either clean up the fuel they make or pay credits to those who are diverting waste from landfills and recycling it into eco-friendly gas and diesel that runs up to 80% cleaner than petroleum.

Oil companies have seen the future on the horizon, and despite fighting clean fuels legislation, they are investing billions of dollars into their refineries so they too can produce cleaner fuels.

Renewable diesel, in particular, is chemically identical to petroleum diesel, and has proven so popular in California that it now makes up the majority of all diesel sold in the state.

New Jersey Should Enact A Clean Fuel Standard

With two oil refineries located in our state, New Jersey is primed to benefit from becoming the fifth state in the nation to enact a clean fuel standard, and legislation has already been introduced in Trenton by State Senator Bob Smith.

There are over 20,000 restaurants in our state that use cooking oil, and once used, that oil needs to go somewhere. Without a clean fuel standard, it would likely find itself headed west to Washington or California or even Singapore, places with refineries capable of turning it into greener diesel for trucks or sustainable aviation fuel for airplanes.

A clean fuel standard in New Jersey would result in a consistent revenue stream to all of those small restaurant owners while reducing the need for the petroleum-based diesel that’s clogging up our lungs.

A Penny At The Pump Reduces Health Care Costs

Since 2011, California’s clean fuel standard has been responsible for displacing over 21 billion barrels of oil . In Oregon, which launched it’s clean fuels program in 2016, greenhouse gas pollution reduced more than anywhere else in the country.

In a study looking at California’s clean fuel standard, the health benefits included $8.3 billion in pollution-related health costs such as avoided hospital visits and lost work days . Forecasts showed by 2025, the CFS will have prevented 38,000 asthma attacks as well as 600 heart attacks, 880 premature deaths, and almost 75,000 lost work days – all caused by air pollution.

Critics of the clean fuel standard have carried on like Cassandras, warning of massive price hikes for consumers, but consumers in states that have passed the law are spending less of their household budgets on fuel. Meanwhile, air pollution costs our economy five percent of our gross domestic product (GDP) annually, according to a Stanford University study.

To those who might dismiss these concerns, consider this: The cost of inaction is measured not in economic losses but in human lives—lives that are cut short or filled with chronic illness because of our collective failure to act.

The Air We Breathe Defines the Future We Build

The health of our community is not negotiable, and the air we breathe should not be toxic. New Jerseyans have a responsibility to demand better—not just for ourselves, but for future generations. The fight for clean air is a fight for our right to a healthy life. It's a fight we cannot afford to lose.

Take a deep breath, and urge your state legislator to vote in favor of a clean fuel standard.

Why Renewable Diesel Could Clean Up The Dirtiest Way To Travel Cross-Country

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 01:05:23 GMT

New York Times Shines Light On Carbon Emissions

It’s long been an article of faith that traveling by train is the cleanest way to enjoy America’s scenic beauty. Not so fast, says the New York Times .

If you are vacationing anywhere outside of Amtrak’s Northeast route between Boston and Washington, DC, your steel wheels are propelled by an engine that runs on petroleum diesel that may actually be more harmful to the environment.

How Much Pollution Comes From Diesel?

In 2022, diesel fuel consumption accounted for about 25% of total U.S. transportation sector CO2 emissions, and about 10% of total U.S. energy-related emissions. Emissions from rail transport contribute about two percent of all greenhouse gases, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

A single passenger traveling from New York to San Francisco on an Amtrak economy class ticket generates about 1,000 pounds of CO2 , an amount that increases if you book a sleeper cabin. Compare that to the 840 pounds of CO2 racked up by an air passenger in economy class.

Why so much? For starters, most of Amtrak’s trains were built in the 1970’s, before energy efficiency was a consideration. But the real reason is the fuel.

Prior to COVID reducing passenger counts, Amtrak burned over 59 million gallons of petroleum-based diesel fuel, which translated into nearly 687,000 metric tons of CO2.

Could Renewable Diesel Change The Equation?

Electrifying passenger and freight rail isn’t an option for much of the country because the transmission lines don’t exist, and even if they did, a percentage of that electricity would still be generated by fossil fuels like coal and natural gas.

Add to that hurdle, rail consolidation has left Americans with a powerful oligarchy of freight companies who have invested billions of dollars in current engine technology and who would oppose electrifying engines because it would cause massive hits to their profitability if forced to change.

There is, however, a decarbonization solution that could be implemented today. Renewable diesel, derived from recycled cooking oils, greases, and food waste, emerges as the eco-friendly alternative capable of reducing emissions from rail by 60-80%.

Amtrak is already incorporating renewable diesel as part of its Net-Zero Emissions strategy. Freight-rail carrier Union Pacific is now using renewable fuels on several of its locomotives because it’s an easy drop-in fuel replacement while its competitor, BNSF Railway, is in the midst of a three-year pilot program that mixes renewable diesel with biodiesel.

Because renewable diesel is chemically identical to petroleum-based diesel, passenger and freight companies won’t have to invest billions of dollars to be more sustainable.

Renewable Fuels Reduce Port Emissions

For communities like Newark that are situated adjacent to airports and seaports, where freight is loaded and unloaded, clean fuels have an even greater benefit as they reduce harmful air pollutants that cause higher rates of asthma and lung disease that are four to five times higher than state averages.

Why Aren’t We Making More Renewable Diesel?

With such tangible benefits and immediate reduction of America’s carbon footprint, what’s holding up the production of greener diesel? In a word—policy.

In 2021, 99% of all 28 million barrels of renewable diesel consumed in the United States were consumed in California because they implemented a clean fuel standard (CFS) in 2011. Oregon, where most of the rest of renewable diesel is consumed, enacted a CFS program in 2016. Washington and New Mexico have more recently followed suit.

Under the CFS programs, companies are incentivized to produce more greener gas and diesel while those who continue to make the most polluting fuels are penalized. As a result, legacy oil companies are now pumping billions of dollars into local economies to transition their petroleum refineries into biorefineries that make renewable diesel.

Renewable diesel has proved so popular in the Golden State that the majority of all diesel sold now comes from recycled sources instead of being pumped from oil wells around the world.

With two new biorefineries in California coming online, the state will produce 1.4 billion gallons by the end of 2024.

Could Renewable Diesel Be Produced In New Jersey?

Before you head out on summer vacation (whether by air, train, or car) contact your member of the state legislature and urge them to support S. 2425, the clean fuel standard .

Like the four states that have already passed this green legislation, the clean fuel standard forces oil companies to reduce the amount of pollution in their product or pay a penalty to those who are generating more eco-friendly gas and diesel.

Passing clean fuel legislation would give an incentive to the two oil refineries in New Jersey that produce a combined 418,500 barrels per day to help divert millions of pounds of cooking oils, restaurant grease, and food waste from landfills and give it a second life as fuel for trucks, trains, and planes while creating good jobs across the state.

Clean Fuels Give Our Kids A Healthier Ride To School

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Thu, 07 Mar 2024 23:31:18 GMT

The Fuel In Our School Buses Is Harming New Jersey's Kids

As parents and community members, we're constantly seeking ways to ensure our children's health and safety. One area that's recently come into the spotlight is the environmental impact of school buses and their health effects on our children.

Hidden Health Costs of New Jersey School Buses

Every day, hundreds of thousands of New Jersey's parents send their children to school via bus expecting a safe environment, but studies show diesel exhaust from those buses contains a mix of air pollutants that are classified as human carcinogens.

Of New Jersey’s 21,700 registered school buses, 99% run on fossil fuels, specifically diesel. All of that diesel exhaust contains fine particles ( PM2.5 ) that penetrate deep into the lungs and can exacerbate asthma, reduce lung function, and increase the risk of respiratory infections.

The average school bus in New Jersey travels 12,000 miles per year, which, based on average speeds, translates to about 343 hours of road time annually. For students who ride the bus 90% of the time, this means 308 hours a year spent inhaling diesel emissions ! Over the course of an entire K-12 career, a child who rides the bus to school is exposed to 3,700 hours of diesel emissions that are harmful to brain development and educational outcomes .

The impacts of school bus pollution don’t just impact the kids who ride them. In New Jersey, school bus emissions pump 437,823 Metric Tons of CO2 annually into the air. That’s the equivalent of burning 2,414 railcars’ worth of coal.

The Case for Cleaner Fuels In New Jersey

Our kids don’t have to wait in a cloud of pollution. Every school bus in the state could switch to clean fuels recycled from cooking oil, fats, grease, food waste, farm waste, and forest waste TODAY and run up to 80 percent cleaner. Electric buses will be a step forward too, but that will take years or decades to implement.

Why the urgency? Exposure to PM2.5 on school buses are 5-6 times greater than the ambient levels New Jerseyans breathe.

A Path Forward For Cleaner Transportation Fuel In NJ

What’s standing in the way of healthier minds and bodies? Big Oil’s monopoly over our gas tanks.

Car, truck, and bus drivers have been forced to use fuel that pollutes our air and drives increasingly powerful hurricanes for over 100 years.

Fortunately, New Jersey’s legislature recently introduced clean fuel legislation , aligning the interests of parents and schools with the desire to see every child show up to school ready to learn.

The clean fuel standard (CFS) gives drivers the choice of more sustainable, price-competitive fuel at the pump by forcing oil companies to compete with greener gas and diesel on a level playing field.

The CFS is already credited with reducing air pollution in three West Coast states and is responsible for replacing 60% of all fossil fuel diesel in California with renewable diesel.

No parent would willingly send their child to a school laden with toxins, so why would we continue to let our kids inhale fossil fuel fumes from the buses that take them to school? Let’s make the wheels on the bus go round and round with cleaner fuel.

New Jersey Introduces Clean Fuels Legislation

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 00:23:20 GMT

First on East Coast to Advance Clean Fuels Legislation

West Trenton, New Jersey - January 30, 2024 – Fill It Up Clean New Jersey, a diverse coalition of business and community stakeholders, is applauding the New Jersey State Senate for introducing legislation that would give The Garden State access to clean transportation fuels and provide immediate environmental benefits to reduce pollution and protect New Jersey’s air and water. If passed by the full legislature, New Jersey would be the first state on the eastern seaboard to establish a clean fuel transportation standard. Prime sponsors of the newly-introduced Bill, S2425 are Senator Bob Smith , Chair, Senate Environment & Energy Committee, and Senator John McKeon , also a member of the Senate Environment & Energy Committee.

“Transportation is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize and New Jersey needs an aggressive approach, working in concert with the Governor’s emphasis on EV’s, to accelerate getting cleaner fuels into the heavy-duty transportation and aviation markets,” said Senator Smith. “If other states can do this, why can’t we? I want New Jersey to be the first state on the eastern seaboard to establish a clean fuel transportation standard. What New Jersey accomplishes; others will follow.”

Transportation emissions accounted for almost half of all carbon dioxide (C02) emissions in New Jersey in 2021, over 10 percent higher than the national average . Diesel and gasoline are some of the largest sources of emissions and have been found to be correlated with asthma, lung cancer, and other respiratory diseases.

“Rather than importing oil from overseas, we can create clean fuels right here in the U.S. from renewable sources that will help us meet our aggressive climate objectives while creating good-paying green jobs,” continued Senator Smith.“By creating policy that helps our transportation sector decarbonize, we can meet our state's goals in time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

The bill addresses the fact that a disproportionate number of pollutants plague overburdened communities who suffer from diesel and jet engine fuel emissions and more. “Disadvantaged communities are often forgotten and left behind because people don’t realize how many are forced to live in areas where planes fly overhead, buses idle and trucks pass through our neighborhoods,” said Loretta Winters, President, Gloucester County NAACP. “Addressing this in New Jersey, as this bill does, is long overdue.”

In Oregon and California, where clean fuel standards are already in existence, overburdened communities are found to experience lower levels of asthma, COPD, and cancer than their counterparts in non-clean fuel standard markets. A study in Oregon by UC Davis found that the Clean Fuel Standard in Oregon equates to $80M a year in public health benefits.

The bill, called the New Jersey Low Carbon Transportation Standard, would establish a low carbon transportation standard program in the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). New Jersey would be the first on the East Coast, to adopt such legislation. Under the program, each refiner, wholesaler, or importer of diesel or gasoline, and each producer of alternative fuel participating in the program, would be required to ensure that the transportation fuel refined, sold, imported, or produced by the entity, meets the low carbon transportation standard on an annual basis.

The proposed legislation notes that the low carbon transportation standard is technology-neutral and science-based and is an “effective policy to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector, and associated subsectors that may be difficult to electrify, while also achieving other co-benefits such as improving public health due to a reduction in emissions.”

The legislation also notes that the creation of a low carbon transportation standard that rewards environmental performance will result in increased jobs in a wide variety of sectors including construction, agriculture, forestry, and transportation. It will also create new markets for what would normally be considered waste, including municipal solid waste, manure, agricultural and forestry residuals, and industrial emissions. Since the deployment of the CFS in both California and Oregon, unemployment rates have dramatically reduced, from 12.4% and 10.3% to

3.9% and 3.8%, respectively. Individuals have more choice at the gas pump, cleaner air, and clean energy jobs.

Similar legislation is in place in Washington , Oregon, California , and throughout Canada . In addition, 14 states have introduced clean fuels legislation including New Mexico, Hawaii, Minnesota, New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Illinois.

About Fill It Up Clean New Jersey
The Fill It Up Clean New Jersey Coalition is invested in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from New Jersey’s highest-emitting sector: Transportation. The coalition represents a diverse group of stakeholders in the New Jersey area including renewable fuel producers and distributors, electric vehicle charging companies, nonprofit organizations, social justice and faith-based advocates, automakers, private aviation, businesses, trade associations, and renewable energy companies. The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.

Media Contact:
Lee Keller
Call or text: 206.799.3805
lee@thekellergroup.com

Ready To Drive The Zero-Emission Highway?

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 19:47:37 GMT

New Jersey Aspires To Clean Car Future But At What Cost?

In the 20th Century, we were promised that by now we'd have flying cars and personal jetpacks that propelled us through space. Today, it's zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) by 2035. It's an ambitious goal that'll bring many wonderful benefits with it but will require lots of blood, sweat, and tears to achieve.

In June 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy proposed the so-called Advanced Clean Cars II Rule, which requires automakers to start selling an increasing number of zero-emission vehicles in 2027 so that by 2035 100% of all new cars and trucks are ZEVs.

He described his proposal as a "commitment to every New Jersey family and the air they breathe, air that will be cleaner and healthier tomorrow thanks to the steps we’re taking to reduce emissions today."

But currently the only motor vehicle sold on the commercial market that comes anywhere close to zero-emissions is the electric vehicle. By 2035, there may be hydrogen-powered cars and trucks on the market as well but that's still a way off.

From 2011 to 2022, the number of battery electric vehicles (BEV) registered on New Jersey roads soared from 40 to 68,414 . In 2023, there are 95,097 BEVs registered statewide. In 2022, 8% of nearly 458,000 new cars or trucks sold run on electricity or around 36,640 .

Biz Leaders Say Clean Car Plan Bad For Less Affluent

New Jersey business and industry organizations are charged up over the costs, arguing the clean car plan will put an "enormous financial burden" on the state's economy and disproportionately harm low- and middle-class New Jerseyans.

"We share the Governor’s desire to reduce carbon emissions, but the significant disadvantages of this proposal greatly outweigh any potential benefits," New Jersey Business and Industry Association argues in a letter to state legislature leaders.

It would also make motor vehicles unaffordable for less affluent residents and worsen income inequality.

"By denying thousands of New Jerseyans access to an affordable vehicle, this mandate would be crippling to our communities, businesses, economy, and labor workforce, and would exacerbate income inequality in our state."

ZEVs Only By 2035 Requires Major Upfront Investments

Ramping up New Jersey's infrastructure to accommodate increasingly larger numbers of ZEVs as well as convincing drivers to give up their current cars and trucks earlier than usual, among other challenges, isn't going to be easy.

The Murphy administration hopes to lessen those obstacles through a gradual phase-in by investing millions into charging stations and other infrastructure. There's currently $10 million in the state's recently adopted fiscal year 2024 budget, but with only 1,246 public charging stations as of today in a state with 6 million registered vehicles, it will cost exponentially more to meet the mandate.

Federal incentives up to $7,500 have helped reduce the price gap between EVs and gas-powered vehicles, but at the end of 2022, they cost an average $12,000 more , according to Kelley Blue Book. And as more and more EVs are manufactured and sold, costs will come down as they have with fax machines, smart phones, personal computers, and about every other technological innovation of the past. But it'll still take some time for economies of scale to ramp up.

The real long-term savings of transitioning to electric vehicles lies in fuel costs, up to 60% less , according to a 2020 Consumer Reports study. Then, there's the environmental and health benefits that are predicted to pay off handsomely.

The American Lung Association predicts that transitioning to ZEVs in New Jersey over the next 25-plus years could save up to $44 billion in public health costs and prevent nearly 4,000 premature deaths, almost 93,000 asthma attacks, and 464,000 lost workdays.

"The evidence is clear—acting now to rapidly accelerate the shift to a clean transportation sector will result in a plethora of public health and subsequent economic benefits," a letter to Governor Murphy from more than 100 state medical professionals urges .

Despite all the long-term potential positive benefits, not all New Jerseyans have the economic resources to pitch their gas-powered car or truck for an EV just because it's better for the environment. Some have no choice but to drive their current motor vehicles until the wheels fall off.

Other States Have Clean Car Plans & Clean Fuels

Another option exists today for drivers who want to reduce the pollute in their commute but who can't afford an electric vehicle.

California, Oregon, and Washington have all adopted their own equivalent of New Jersey's Advanced Clean Car II Rules but eased the adoption curve by incentivizing clean fuels that work in all gas-powered and diesel engines produced since 2001.

Under rules known as clean fuel standards, oil companies must reduce the amount of pollution in their gas and diesel or pay credits to companies who produce low-carbon emissions fuel. By no longer allowing oil companies to pass off the cost of their pollution to society, producers of green gas and diesel can compete for market share without one arm tied behind their backs.

As a result, as the supply of renewable fuels increases in these states, drivers can keep their perfectly good gas-powered cars or trucks while reducing their tailpipe emissions by up to 80%.

New Jersey is already on the path to cleaner fuel with roughly 440,000 flex-fuel vehicles operating on E85 and 25,000 on renewable diesel . That's five times the number of registered EVs and plug-in hybrid EVs.

New Jerseyans Can Fight Climate Change With The Vehicle They Own

Industry forecasts predict 45% of new car sales will be EVs by 2035 , which will make a significant improvement in our air and water quality. Combined with a lower lifetime operating cost, there are plenty of good reasons to go electric.

Governor Murphy deserves credit for his climate leadership, but it would be even better if there was a plan to reduce emissions faster and include more New Jerseyans in the effort.

More cleaner fuels now reduces the climate curve while the state builds more charging stations, EV prices decrease, and other carbon-free forms of transportation like green hydrogen scale up.

Sounding Off to DEP About NJ’s Gas Car Ban

It's Peak Hurricane Season In New Jersey

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 11:54:43 GMT

Is It Going To Be Another Of "Those" Years?

Now that it's after Labor Day, do you know where your go bag is? Have you stocked up on sand bags, plywood, and other emergency supplies? If not, you should probably head over to your local hardware store to buy them sooner than later.

Mother Nature is ready to rumble so you want to be prepared. And stay out of the water no matter how much cruising to the Jersey Shore tempts you, especially with temps hitting the triple digits lately around southern Jersey.

We're in the midst of the peak months of this year's Atlantic hurricane season, with September 10th its official height. An unusually active August this year could set the stage for a more tumultuous September and October when the numbers and intensity of storms typically increase.

In mid-August, four named storms reared their ugly heads within 48 hours. At month's end, there were 11. Only eight seasons in the past 100 years have seen so much activity in such a short span of time. Those include 2005 with Hurricane Katrina, 2020 with a record 30 named storms, and 2021 with Hurricane Ida.

Hurricane Idalia started brewing on August 29 , 10 days earlier than a normal third storm of the season, bringing on crazy winds, frightening storm surges, and destructive flooding before it roared out to sea.

High Ocean Temps Provide Rocket Fuel For Hurricanes

Earlier this year, the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration predicted we'd have an "average" season back in May. That, however, happened before the Atlantic turned into a giant hot tub down off Florida with record-breaking triple-digit water temperatures, essentially rocket fuel for tropical storms and hurricanes.

By August 10, hurricane forecasters upgraded their original prediction to "above normal." There's now a 60% chance of such a season, compared to the 30% they originally forecasted. They're currently banking on as many as 21 named storms, up to 11 of which will turn into hurricanes, up to five of those major ones.

Even off the Jersey Shore in mid-July, waters were abnormally warm abnormally early, hitting nearly 79F in mid-July, 10F above normal. It made Atlantic City feel more like the Outer Banks, which is over 400 miles to its south. In 2022, ocean temperatures were in the 50s well into August.

What Happens Elsewhere Doesn't Always Stay There

But we live in New Jersey. What do we have to worry about if we don't have relatives and friends down south? Plenty.

What happens farther south of us doesn't always stay there. Hurricanes Sandy and Ida are prime examples of how massive these storms have become as climate change has worsened and the planet's oceans have gotten warmer. We could easily get slammed by the same extreme weather wreaking havoc hundreds or thousands of miles away.

It's isn't the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area that ranks first nationwide for greatest risk for storm surge and hurricane wind damage for 2023, according to CoreLogic, a real estate data analytics firm. It's the New York City-Newark-Jersey City metro that does, with, not surprisingly, Miami in second.

The Roar Of Extreme Weather, Smell Of The Aftermath

As if a Category 5 hurricane barreling down on you, your family, and your home isn't frightening enough, there's an even worse fate to befall you after a major storm hits: The aftermath.

Just one inch of water in an average 2,500 square-foot home could cost you as much $27,000 . To clean up a flooded basement, you'd have to shell out from $1,600 to as much $6,900.

To make matters worse, flood insurance and federal disaster relief only cover an estimated 33% of total damages caused by hurricane-related flooding, according to Congressional Budget Office research.

But we don't have to live in perpetual fear of the Atlantic hurricane season. We have the tools to combat the root cause of these massive and increasingly destructive storms.

Play A Penny Ante At The Pump To Beat The House

In Atlantic City, anyone can afford to play the penny ante slots. Adding a penny to switch to renewable fuels in our cars or trucks cuts is an even more affordable bargain when you consider that green gas and diesel cuts up to 80% of harmful climate pollution from vehicles. In New Jersey, where 4.6 billion gallons a year of gasoline and diesel are consumed, think of how much cleaner our air and water would be while improving the odds your home and local community remain safe from the ravages of hurricane season.

NOAA Forecasters Upgrade Atlantic Hurricane Season To ‘Above Normal’

State Tells Ida-Hit Homeowners Forgeddabout Rebuilding

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Tue, 29 Aug 2023 21:56:48 GMT

Will FEMA Have Enough $$ To Help Future Hurricane Victims In NJ?

As climate change induced storms and hurricanes gain intensity, combined with private insurers increasingly unwilling to underwrite policies for homes most prone to flood or collapse, officials in Trenton are encouraging residents who take advantage of the Blue Acres Homeowner Buyout program to sell their homes rather than rebuild them.

So far, about 80 homeowners in Manville, which took a heavy hit during Hurricane Ida in 2021, have been told they will not receive state help if they choose to elevate or repair their homes. Overall, the flood plain area encompasses about 500 homes, where approximately 2,000 people live.

Historically, The Blue Acres Buyout Program worked to improve the slow approval times that keep homeowners from collecting disaster relief and the tortuous process of finding replacement homes. The program has impressive metrics that show its success. Since Superstorm Sandy, the program has secured federal funding for nearly 1,200 properties and made offers on 1,115 of them. To date, about 700 homes in 20 municipalities and 10 counties have been demolished, creating open space to provide a buffer against future floods, and an asset for recreation and environmental rehabilitation.

Repeatedly Rebuilding After Hurricanes No Longer Makes Sense

In 2022, Gov. Phil Murphy said the state would use $50 million of Hurricane Ida recovery funds to relocate New Jerseyans hit the hardest by hurricane-related flooding to higher and safer ground, among other flood mitigation measures. The razed properties would then be used as open space to catch flood waters before they wreak havoc.

“No New Jerseyan should have to see their life’s work washed away by devastating rain and floodwaters. As New Jersey continues to experience more extreme weather events, we must become proactive in our approach to protect the communities and businesses that continue to bear the brunt of flooding and damage from these storms,” he said.

State Faced With Tough Choices In Using Disaster Aid

Manville has suffered through three major disasters since Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and contains Lost Valley, a natural flood plain between the Raritan and Millstone rivers. The borough is littered with empty lots of homes that homeowners already took buyouts for after Hurricanes Irene and Sandy.

Lisa Ryan, a Department of Community Affairs spokeswoman, says the new policy change is the result of a multi-agency effort that used advanced flood-mapping technology from Rutgers University to determine what properties were "very likely" to flood again and made the most sense to be razed instead of repaired, elevated or rebuilt.

Public Safety A Top Priority In A Warming World

Murphy spokesperson Tyler Jones explained to NJ Advance Media that the difficult decision to offer buyouts to these homeowners instead of federal aid entered into "lightly."

“(With) the increase of more powerful storms due to climate change, there is no doubt that another event will occur sooner rather than later. Despite these catastrophic floods, little has been done over the last several decades in Manville to truly mitigate the clear public safety risks,” Jones said.

Nearly 630,000 state properties—or 27% of all NJ buildings—have a more than 26% chance of getting hit by flooding over the next 30 years, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which assesses risk for all 50 states through its National Risk Index . New Jersey ranks #10 for highest risk with an index of 83 out of 100 and estimated annual flood losses at $1.6 billion.

So Much Climate Chaos So Few $$$ For Disaster Recovery

Heightening climate change has unleashed increasingly devastating storms upon the nation, putting a major strain on the limited pool of federal resources available for disaster relief, which, in the case of flooding, usually covers a fraction of total damage costs. Since 2016, the nation has witnessed 139 separate billion-dollar disasters responsible for $1.1 trillion in damage and over 5,000 deaths.

Hurricane wind and storm-related flooding accounts for an estimated $34 billion a= year of economic losses in the residential sector nationwide. That includes $20 billion for flood damage, less than a quarter of which (23%) is usually covered by federal disaster relief through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Flood Insurance Program.

From 1992 until 2021, FEMA spent a total of $347 billion (2022 dollars) on disaster relief , 44% for hurricane-related wind and flood damage.

New Jersey has received at least $2.6 billion in recovery aid since 2012, including $1.7 billion for Hurricane Sandy and $867 million for Hurricane Ida , which together has caused nearly $28 billion in economic losses so far.

To make matters worse, FEMA appears to be running out of disaster relief money this year right before the peak of Atlantic hurricane season, thanks to unexpected catastrophes earlier this year and late last, among others.

“From atmospheric rivers in January to tornadoes and wildfires in December, we can no longer speak of a disaster season... We now face intensified natural disasters throughout the year, often in places that are not used to experiencing them," FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told a U.S. House Homeland Security panel last month.

Pretty bad timing, considering Atlantic Ocean temps are hitting record highs this summer, increasing odds for more destructive and tumultuous storms slamming the Atlantic coastline.

Clean Fuels Lessen Need For Disaster Aid, Home Buyouts

Climate change is hurting New Jerseyans' pocketbooks, but there are some affordable options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that are wreaking havoc around the planet. Our choices don't have to be limited to offering home buyouts, insurance premium hikes, and taxpayer-funded disaster aid and flood insurance payouts.

Switching to clean fuels for an extra penny a gallon at the pump could help tame the massively destructive storms flooding New Jersey residents. For about $5 per year for every person in the state, we could reduce climate pollution from transportation by up to 80% .

That's a bargain compared to the $2.6 billion in federal disaster relief provided in taxpayer funds or the $28 billion in economic losses caused by Hurricanes Sandy and Ida.

Add in benefits like cleaner air, better health, lower health care costs, and more jobs and economic opportunities for New Jerseyans, and it becomes clear that the road to disaster is the road driven with dirty fossil fuels.

FEMA Slipping Into Red Before Hurricane Season's Pea k

N.J. Clean Energy Jobs Growth Near Top Of Nation

Mon, 24 Jul 2023 22:37:39 GMT

State's Clean Energy Industry Shows Promise

New Jersey Ranks #4 For Green Energy Jobs Growth

With 36,000 or less than 1% of its workforce employed in clean energy industries, the Garden State hasn't historically been a green economic powerhouse, at least compared to states like California or Texas. But the Department of Energy's recent Energy Jobs Employment Report shows our turbines are spinning faster.

Last year, New Jersey ranked #4 nationwide in growth for renewable energy jobs. Only New Mexico, Kentucky, and Oklahoma performed better.

A total of 3,065 clean energy jobs were added in the state in 2022, a 5.7% increase over 2021. That growth rate beats 3.9% nationwide for green jobs and 3.1% for the overall U.S. workforce.

New Jersey even surpassed California, Oregon, and Washington, three states leading the nation in encouraging greater use of clean fuels, in job growth. They ranked #25, #36, and #41 with less impressive growth rates of 3.6%, 2.8%, and 2.5%, respectively.

Climate Change Driving Clean Energy Power Generation

Catastrophic weather events like intensifying hurricanes and their connection to climate change are causing a shift in both New Jersey's job and energy markets. There are now more than three times as many workers in the state employed generating electricity from clean energy resources (solar, wind, and hydropower) than from fossil fuels (natural gas, coal, and oil).

The solar industry employed 8,781, followed by wind with 1,114 and hydropower with 289 for green electricity generation. Natural gas led the way for fossil-fuel-sourced power production with 1,952 employees followed by coal with 1,150 and oil with 86.

Green Gas & Diesel Jobs Growing In New Jersey

N.J.'s biofuels industry employed 297 in 2022, including 71 in corn ethanol, 110 in other ethanol, and 116 in woody biomass, which is still a slight improvement from 2021's 243, but still lag far behind national leaders like Oregon and California, both of which have adopted clean fuel standards to incentivize private companies to produce more of the less polluting fuel within their state borders.

Oil and other petroleum processing employment went up in 2022 by 700 jobs, thanks to increased exports of U.S. petroleum as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

U.S. Created 300K New Green Energy Jobs In 2022

Overall, the nation created 300,000 new green energy jobs, bringing the total number of Americans working in the field in 2022 to 8.1 million.

California, Texas, New York, Massachusetts, and Ohio ranked in top five for most new clean energy jobs while New Jersey ranked #12.

Related Stories:

U.S. Energy And Employment Jobs Report

Nearly 300,000 New Jobs In 2022

New Jersey Summers To Get Weirder As Climate Change Worsens

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 11:27:57 GMT

It's Not Just Hurricanes Anymore

Summertime, and the living is easy? Uhh... Not at all these days.

As climate change driven by fossil fuel use gets worse, the beloved season of summer has become a grab bag of weird weather phenomena for New Jerseyans.

Your leisurely vacation at the Jersey Shore or a peaceful hike in the woods is no longer a given. Welcome to summer in the age of climate change.

So far, 2023 has been the hottest June on record, and the long term pulse is likely to go higher as scientists have already identified an El Nino year developing in the Pacific. It goes without saying that this summer's going to be a scorcher in New Jersey and all over the East Coast.

The Heat Is On: High Temps, Little Rain Fuel Wildfires

The abnormally high temperatures and dry conditions that began earlier this year have put the state, especially southern New Jersey, in a "very high" risk category for wildfires this summer, according to the National Weather Service.

At Bass River State Forest in Ocean County, a 5,000-acre wildfire continues to rage, spewing toxic smoke all over the region. Trevor Reynor of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service says that the park is "very overstocked" with "high-dense fuels" that lead to "extreme fire behavior."

Several smaller fires have popped up as well, prompting New Jersey to issue a statewide Red Flag Warning nearly a month after wildfire season usually ends.

And then there's last week's massive cloud of toxic smoke from eastern Canada, where wildfires are burning uncontrollably during the country's worst season EVER. It's prompted officials in New York and New Jersey to urge residents to stay inside at all costs because of unhealthy air quality throughout the region.

As if our air quality wasn't bad enough from the brown haze, above-average temperatures bring more high ozone days, making it harder to breathe for older adults, asthmatics, people who work outside, and children in a state with an asthma mortality rate that's 18 percent above the national average.

Dirty Fuel Is Fueling More Intense Wildfires

Fossil fuels, namely coal, oil, and gas, account for over 75 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations. Unfortunately, drivers concerned about climate change have had little choice in powering their vehicles as multinational oil companies have stymied progress by funding misinformation campaigns about the climate and preventing more eco-friendly fuels from competing with their monopoly.

However, as hurricanes, wildfires, and other abnormal events become the new normal, people are demanding more sustainable solutions for their lifestyles, especially for the way they drive. Sales of zero emission vehicles are breaking records in New Jersey and across the country. Still, many people can't afford an electric vehicle, while others worry about the lack of EV charging stations, and electrifying trucks, ships, and airplanes isn't a feasible option today.

All isn't hopeless, though. Greener gas and diesel is available today. While drivers have been acquainted with ethanol for many years as a way to reduce tailpipe emissions, cleaner fuels made from used cooking oil, grease, food waste, farm waste, and animal waste can be used in passenger vehicles, trucks, and even airplanes.

Clean Fuels Take The Biggest Chunk Out Of Climate Change

Transportation is the largest source of climate pollution in New Jersey, accounting for nearly half of all greenhouse gas emissions. Using renewable fuels in cars, trucks, and farm equipment would reduce those emissions by up to 80 percent.

So if you aren't wild about wildfires and breathing brown air, tell your gas station attendant to "Fill it up, clean!" next time you need to fill your tank.

Atlantic Hurricane Season Likely To Be Average

Environmental Justice & Our Clean Energy Future

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 00:50:00 GMT

Black & Brown Communities Hit Hardest By Pollution

It’s not a coincidence that many of New Jersey’s 114 Superfund sites, locations that receive federal funding for pollution cleanup, are located in low-income communities of color.

The impact of environmental racism on communities of color in New Jersey is deadly. Asthma is a major public health indicator in low-income Black and brown communities. The medical cost and lost job productivity directly resulting from costs associated with asthma in New Jersey is $450 million annually. Diesel pollution associated with mobile emissions in urban areas causes nearly 1,000 premature deaths and 1,300 non-fatal heart attacks annually.

Read the rest of the article at NJ.com...

Choking On Climate Denial

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Thu, 08 Jun 2023 15:32:53 GMT

NJ Star-Ledger: The Cost Of Climate Change Is Here

If you’ve been wondering about the cost of climate change, well, here it is: It’s diminishing your quality of life today. It’s the apocalyptic haze hanging over our state, that strange cough when you walk outside and taste smoke from a forest fire that’s burning nearly 700 miles away.

Read the rest of the NJ Star Ledger editorial here:

There's Gold In Them Thar Vats. Clean Fuels Gold.

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Tue, 16 May 2023 23:41:04 GMT

Leftover Oil, Grease Could Get Second Life As Clean Fuels

Hold on to your fryers, funnel cake suppliers, greasy spoons and other food establishments in New Jersey that like to deep fry. There’s gold in them thar vats.

It’s no secret that running a restaurant is brutal, especially after a few years of COVID lockdown. Even in a normal economy, six in 10 go under in the first year . Eight in 10 usually fail within five years.

But what used to be considered waste could be a lot more valuable as renewable fuels use goes up.

Out Of Dump, Into Pump: Used Oil To Eco-Friendly Fuels

That unsightly leftover oil and lard that once went to landfills to decompose has the potential to help the state's restaurant industry thrive, even in the face of other economic uncertainties.

Fryer waste can be made into eco-friendly and sustainable fuels that reduce toxic air pollution by up to 80 percent compared to gasoline and petroleum-based diesel, at prices competitive or even below gas prices.

Over the past several years, thefts of used cooking oil and grease have been on the rise nationally, thanks to increasing demand for clean fuels in California and Oregon and elsewhere. It has even been dubbed the "new copper" for its value on the black market.

Up To 34-M Gallons Of Clean Fuels A Year Could Come From Leftover Oil

New Jersey has nearly 20,000 restaurants, employing 307,900 people, and generating $23.3 billion a year in revenue , according to latest National Restaurant Industry Association statistics.

The average U.S. restaurant produces from 150 to 250 pounds or 20 to 33 gallons of used cooking oil a week, according to Restaurant Technologies Inc. estimate. That computes to 1,040 to 1,700 gallons a year per establishment.

New Jersey's food establishments have the potential to provide as much as 34 million gallons of used oil, grease, and so on per year as clean fuel feedstock, depending on how accurately RTI's national numbers bear out for the state. That's essentially 34-million gallons of fuel, assuming one gallon of feedstock produces about 1 gallon of fuel as it does for biodiesel at least.

Flourishing Eateries Means $$$ For All New Jerseyans

Food establishments already account for 8 percent of employment in the Garden State. By 2030, they're expected to employ nearly 20 percent more New Jerseyans (an additional 57,300 jobs), according to the National Restaurant Association.

Additional revenue from turning waste into fuel would likely push employment even higher. And then there's the rippling effect a thriving restaurant sector would have on everyone else in the state.

Every dollar of revenue brought in food establishments generates $2.12 for N.J.'s economy. Every $1 million made generates nearly 18.2 additional jobs, according to the restaurant association.

Want to help support your favorite restauranteur, chef or waiter? Support clean fuels for cleaner air and a better economy.

Related Stories:

Why Cooking Oil Thefts Are On The Rise

How To Make Biodiesel From Used Cooking Oil

New Jersey, We've Got A Problem - Our Air

michael@cleanupmarketing.com (Michael Grossman) — Wed, 03 May 2023 20:12:30 GMT

Gridlock, Greenhouse Gases & Smell Of The Smog

It should come as no surprise that New Jersey, a major commuting corridor between Philadelphia and New York City, has insufferably toxic air.

Nearly half of CO2 and other toxic air emissions that cause global warming and pollute the air in the Garden State come from the transportation sector, compared to 38% nationwide.

One-third of New Jerseyans spend at least 35 minutes a day getting to work, with 15 percent logging more than one hour. And almost half are on the road to work between 8 a.m. and noon, creating immense gridlock trapped in shroud of tailpipe exhaust.

NJ Turnpike Ranks #3 On Worst Highways List

Is it any wonder why local NJ media would rank the Garden State's most hellish highways and byways? The New Jersey Turnpike, not surprisingly, ended up #3 on the list. Wallet Hub ranked the state #3 nationally for worst traffic congestion .

The gridlock is enough to drive sane drivers mad and stressed out to say the least, but there's a more pressing problem: the air pollution associated with it. .

Eight percent or 763,844 New Jersey residents suffer from adult and pediatric asthma. 4.4 percent or 410,000 have COPD and 527,552 have cardiovascular issues, according to the American Lung Association's 2023 State of the Air report , which covers 2019-2021 air quality data.

Toxic air emissions go beyond being harmful to just lungs and hearts. Several recent studies have found it's as bad for the old noggin as well. Harvard School of Public Health researchers recently found that residents living near busy highways are more likely to get dementia , even when the toxic air emissions are below legal limits. Another study concluded that cognitive decline can rear its ugly head within a few hours of sitting in traffic, and a third discovered that dirty air exacerbates symptoms of bipolar depression .

At Least 55% New Jerseyans Breathe Polluted Air

At least 5.17-million or 55 percent of New Jerseyans live in areas where air quality ranks a C or below, according to the Lung Association's report card.

That's a conservative estimate as the Lung Association couldn't even grade six counties, where they don't have the equipment to measure harmful air emissions.

Counties Closest to Metro Areas Rank Worst For Ozone

Bergen and Mercer counties scored Fs for ozone, while Middlesex and Camden got a Ds. The four account for 2.72 million residents.

In Bergen, 8.2 percent or 78,615 county residents suffer from adult or pediatric asthma, 4.6 percent from COPD and 5.9 percent from cardiovascular disease. A little over 7 percent live in poverty and 46.4 percent are of color.

In Mercer, 8.3 percent or 32,005 residents have adult and pediatric asthma, 4.3 percent have COPD and 5.5 percent have cardiovascular disease. Nearly 10 percent live in poverty and 53 percent are of color, according to the Lung Association.

Five other counties got Cs, including Hudson, accounting for 2.45 million people.

Biggest Metro Areas In New Jersey Fail On Air Quality

The state's two largest metro areas connected by the New Jersey Turnpike, both got Fs for ozone and a C or below for 24-hour particle pollution.

To the north, the Newark-New-York City MSA ranked 12th nationwide for highest ozone levels.To the south, the Philadelphia-Reading-Camden MSA area ranks 28th in the nation for ozone.

And even to the west, the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ MSA couldn't muster anything better than Cs for ozone and 24-particle pollution.

Choosing Clean, Renewable Fuels Are An Option Today

Electric vehicles, or zero emissions vehicles as they are often called, are one option for drivers to reduce their emissions and help all New Jerseyans breathe cleaner air. But for families who want to cut climate change causing emissions but who can't afford an EV or worry about the lack of charging stations, there's an alternative.

Clean and sustainable fuels made from fats, greases, food and farm waste reduce harmful tailpipe emissions by up to 80 percent and can be used in any car or truck made in the United States after the year 2000. Western states that have adopted renewable fuels have seen dramatic decreases in air pollution from vehicles while gas prices have remained stable or even dropped.

American Lung Association's State of The Air For New Jersey