DEP
COMMISSIONER SHINN TO PRESENT AWARDS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EXCELLENCE
AND SIGN MODEL AGREEMENT TO FURTHER MILITARY CLEAN-UPS
State Environmental Protection Commissioner
Bob Shinn tonight will present six awards recognizing excellence
in environmental management and sign a model agreement with
Picatinny Arsenal that is expected to lead to innovative
clean-ups at other military and non-military sites.
The ceremonies will be held from 4:30 to
6:30 p.m. at the EcoComplex in Columbus.
"By successfully implementing a range
of effective and innovative environmental strategies, these
award winners are demonstrating that New Jersey is a leader
in environmental management," said Shinn. "From
clean air programs to brownfields redevelopment, open space
preservation to water protection, these organizations are
proving that good environmental management is good business
for New Jersey."
The winners of the state Environmental
Excellence Awards are: MAR Inc., operators of the
Ohmsett National Oil Spill Response Test Facility in Leonardo
where extensive research and training is conducted; Trenton's
aggressive brownfields program that is cleaning up more
than 125 acres in the city; the Delaware River Port Authority
which created park-like open space along the Route 30 corridor
in Camden; the Lockheed Martin facility in Moorestown
which has implemented a model energy management program
at the plant; and the Naval Air Engineering Station
in Lakehurst which is receiving two awards - for
proactively working to protect groundwater supplies in the
pinelands and for its participation in DEP's Silver Track
Program for Environmental Performance, a new DEP permitting
program that provides regulatory flexibility to applicants
committing to achieving significant environmental gains.
The program also encourages the reduction of greenhouse
gases.
The winners were selected by a team of
top-level managers from the state Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP). The main criteria for selection was the
degree to which the organization's activity supports DEP's
open space, clean air, clean water and other strategic goals.
Other factors include the project's cost benefits, creativity
and ability to be replicated elsewhere.
Winners are required to share their success
stories with other organizations. The contest is sponsored
by DEP and the New Jersey Corporation for Advanced Technology
(NJCAT), a public-private partnership promoting emerging
environmental technologies.
"NJCAT is pleased to join with DEP
to honor these organizations for their commitment to improving
the environment and managing energy consumption," said
Rhea Weinberg-Brekke, executive director of NJCAT. "By
highlighting innovative solutions to these issues, we hope
to inspire others to explore creative strategies for protecting
our natural resources."
Also during the ceremonies, Shinn and Michael
Devine, technical director at the U.S. Army's research and
development center at Picatinny Arsenal, will sign a Memorandum
of Understanding establishing a partnership to develop and
implement innovative approaches to environmental management
including state-of-the-art technologies to increase energy
efficiency and reduce environmental contamination.
The agreement will serve as a model for
other partnerships between DEP and other U.S. Department
of Defense sites. It will enable DEP to help determine if
clean-up technologies used at Picatinny can also be used
at other military bases in New Jersey and at non-military
sites as well.
As part of the agreement, DEP will foster
the commercialization of innovative technologies by working
with NJCAT and the Interstate Technology and Regulatory
Cooperation Workgroup, which seeks to promote the transfer
of new technologies throughout the United States.
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