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Meeting New Jersey's Greenhouse Gas Limits
 The New Jersey Global Warming Response Act establishes statewide limits on greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the law mandates the statewide reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, approximately a 20 percent reduction, followed by a further reduction of emissions to 80 percent below 2006 levels by 2050. The law further directs various state agencies to evaluate strategies and make recommendations for meeting the statewide limits.
In December 2009, the State released Meeting New Jersey’s 2020 Greenhouse Gas Limit: New Jersey’s Global Warming Response Act Recommendations Report as required by the Global Warming Response Act. This report provides analyses of significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions, details a broad range of options for meeting New Jersey’s statewide 2020 greenhouse gas limit, and provides a framework for how the State needs to move forward to meet its statewide 2050 greenhouse gas limit.
The report addresses all major sources of greenhouse gas emissions in New Jersey, including transportation, electricity generation, industry, residential buildings, and the commercial sector. The report also addresses sectors such as forestry and agriculture that naturally help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by sequestering (storing) carbon dioxide. In addition, the report includes macroeconomic and microeconomic analyses of a range of possible greenhouse gas reduction measures. As such, the report provides a comprehensive technical and financial framework for decision-making related to various greenhouse gas reduction strategies.
Meeting
New Jersey’s 2020 Greenhouse
Gas Limit: New Jersey’s Global
Warming Response Act Recommendations
Report
- Report
only - no appendices [pdf, 1.2 Mb]
- Report [pdf, 6.0 Mb]
- Executive [pdf, 351 kb]
- Appendix
1: Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions
Expected by 2020 from the Core Recommendations [pdf, 29 kb]
- Appendix
2: Economic Model Results of Core
Recommendations [pdf, 46 kb]
- Appendix
3: New Jersey Accomplishments and
On-going Efforts with Respect to
Greenhouse Gas Legislation, Regulations [pdf, 71 kb]
- Appendix
4: Activities in Other States [pdf, 22 kb]
- Appendix
5: Center for Climate Strategies
(CCS) Analysis of Potential Greenhouse
Gas Emission Reductions and Costs
of Supporting Recommendations and
Related Actions [pdf, 1.1 Mb]
- Appendix
6: Center for Energy, Economic &
Environmental Policy (CEEEP) of
Rutgers University – Microeconomic
Impact of CO2 Reductions in New [pdf, 278 kb]
- Appendix
7: Center for Energy, Economic &
Environmental Policy (CEEEP) of
Rutgers University – Macroeconomic
Impact of CO2 Reductions in New
Jersey [pdf, 818 kb]
Public
participation
A draft of this report was released
for public review in December 2008.
Throughout the month of January 2009,
the state solicited input on these
strategies through a series of stakeholder
sessions, and received feedback from
regulated and interested parties,
including but not limited to: environmental
organizations, industry, farmers,
scientists, planners, and local governments,
as well as experts in planning, transportation,
waste, and innovative technologies.
This input, combined with continued
feedback from other state agencies,
was valuable in helping the state
to further clarify its recommendations
and make sound science-based policy
decisions.
Click
here for information on the stakeholder
process.
Since the release of the report, New Jersey has worked towards implementing a number of the recommendations outlined in the report. Accomplishments include the following:
- As a participating state in the regional Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), NJ will benefit from the results of an approximately $1 million Electric Vehicle Planning Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy
- NJ is a signatory state to the TCI Agreement of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States to Develop a Northeast Electric Vehicle Network and Promote Alternative Transportation Fuels.
- NJ is a signatory state to the TCI Agreement of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States to Support Sustainable Communities.
- NJ streamlined its permitting process for residential plug-in electric vehicle chargers
- NJ participates in a regional effort to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a Clean Fuel Standard. An economic analysis has been released and stakeholder meetings have been held to gather more input.
- The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) adopted new building codes that will increase the energy efficiency of buildings up to 14%
- DCA adopted new construction codes to address highly warming gases covering refrigerants in new and replacement equipment
- The Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund was amended to allow payment of 75 percent of clean-up costs for municipal, county, or redevelopment agency projects where end use is renewable energy.
- The Environmental Infrastructure Trust now awards priority points for projects that result in GHG emissions reductions. The Trust provides low-cost financing for environmental infrastructure projects that control pollution and ensure clean water.
- The State’s Forest Stewardship Legislation allows private forestlands to remain under forest cover according to sustainable forestry practices. Carbon sink criterion is integrated in the proposed rules for implementing the Forest Stewardship legislation.
- NJ completed a scientific assessment of the terrestrial carbon sequestration potential in the State under the auspices of the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (MRCSP).
- As part of its 2008 Statewide Greenhouse Gas Inventory, the Department updated its methodology to more accurately quantify terrestrial carbon sequestration
- In December 2011, the State revised its Energy Master Plan, which is the strategic vision for the use, management, and development of energy in New Jersey over the next decade. Because fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas are the largest sources of greenhouse gases in the state, the Energy Master Plan will serve as the platform for discussions about how New Jersey can meet the Global Warming Response Act’s 2050 greenhouse gas limit.
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