NJ Environmental Leaders Co-Opted By Murphy DEP As Climate Agenda Fails
Earth Day 2023: (L-R) Anjuli Ramos Sierra Club, Ed Potosnak NJ LCV, DEP Commissioner LaTourette – back row: Doug O’Malley Environment NJ, Dave Pringle Hack
[Update below]
The photo above says it all: NJ’s environmental “leaders” have been completely co-opted by the Murphy Administration, most completely by DEP Commissioner Shawn Latourette.
This co-optation has occurred as the corporate regulated community has expanded their capture of DEP regulators.
This co-optation has occurred despite the failure of the Murphy DEP to restore DEP budget, staff, science, and regulatory power after 8 years of systematic cuts and rollbacks by the Christie Administration. In the regulatory fine print, the Murphy DEP largely has maintained continuity with the Christie DEP.
For example, while NJ’s environmental leaders cheerlead, very few people know this, but the Murphy DEP has re-adopted without change 42 Christie DEP regulations (and denied several important petitions for rulemaking on: 1) climate, 2) wildfire prevention, 3) Green Acres, 4) water quality and 5) drinking water).
[Note: Dave Pringle and Clean Water Action are repeat offenders – they collaborated with the Christie DEP rollbacks– again, the photos don’t lie:
This co-optation of environmental “leaders” has occurred as Gov. Murphy’s claims of climate leadership evaporate and are exposed as weak and ineffective, his renewable energy program collapses, and the substance of his environmental policies belie his rhetoric .
Amazingly, LaTourette is the first DEP Commissioner who served as a high powered corporate lawyer and was forced to recuse from DEP decisions involving dozens of his prior corporate clients, but not all, egregiously including the sweetheart deal with NJ based corporate chemical giant BASF in Toms River.
Amazingly, that prior corporate work – with one exception I blew the whistle on and forced media coverage of – has gone unreported by NJ media. Environmental groups have not raised any concerns about this corporate background and the conflicts of interest and ideological agenda it suggests. The Legislature has raised no concerns either.
Amazingly, Gov. Murphy has described LaTourettte not as a prior corporate lawyer but as an “Erin Brockovitch” victim and public interest advocate!
The above photo illustrates exactly the criticism I have been making of NJ’s environmental leaders, particularly the complete collapse of the Sierra Club NJ Chapter following the retirement of longtime Director Jeff Tittel.
Compare that 2023 Earth Day photo with a photo of Earth Day 2005 (both during allegedly “pro-environment” Democratic administrations) – I was there as Director of NJ PEER and Jeff Tittel and his Sierra club staff were there too:
s press conference announcing a plan to clean up contamination along the Delaware River. JOHN ZIOMEK/Courier-Post
Earth Day 2005 – Greenscam Protest. Wolfe (r) and then DEP Commissioner (who hired me in 2002 as policy advisor) Brad Campbell debate
[Update: a former colleague (who shall remain nameless) offered this astute observation – he took the words right out off my mouth!! (emphases mine0:
What gets me when we did earth day events with a commissioner or governor we get something- C1 streams and we would have protested if we didn’t get streams we wanted -300 foot buffer -highlands , flood hazard etc – they ask for nothing and get nothing.
But they do get something: they get used and they get their names in DEP and Gov. Murphy press releases and the newspaper!