RGGI Is A Political Cover – Money Laundering Operation

The New Jersey Climate Adaptation Alliance, a group facilitated by Rutgers University, prepared a series of working briefs to provide background information on projected climate impacts for six major sectors in New Jersey, including agriculture. (DEP proposal at p. 106)

So, just days after the Gov. and Tammy issued an award to Rutgers’ Alliance, they cited their work in the scientific basis for the RGGI rule proposal.

Smells like scientific corruption and a conflict of interest to me –

Imagine the outrage if Trump or Christie funded a “science” Report, written by a former staffer, then issued that Group an award, and then cited the Report in support of their policy views.

Or, at best, lazy science and old fashioned political games among a small circle of friends.

Third, the Gov. awards also went to American Littoral Society, who:

With funding from the DEP and several governmental and community partners, the American Littoral Society in 2017 designed and built a series of nonpoint source reduction and green infrastructure projects

Got that? DEP funds ALS, then issues ALS an award for the work DEP funded! On top of that, the Christie DEP outsourced this grant work to ALS as a means of avoiding complying with the Clean Water Act and enforcing a TMDL in Barnegat Bay!!!

So why the hell is the Murphy DEP awarding Christie DEP outsourcing and CWA TMDL compliance evasion?

DEP got a twofer – the ALS work DEP funded was described by the slogan “green infrastructure” – that’s a concept that not so coincidentally is at the heart of weak DEP’s recent stormwater rule proposal. 

Get that? DEP issues an award to the regulatory outsourcing of Christie DEP to ALS, a friend that is sure to support or not criticize the horrible Murphy DEP stormwater regulation.

But that’s not all – ALS is slated to receive RGGI money too.

As I wrote, explaining the way that DEP funds their friends (and amazingly, Jeanne Herb, author of the Rutgers Report, was involved in the RGGI legislative earmark):

Specifically, when the RGGI legislation was undergoing legislative deliberation, most of the environmental community was working hard and very publicly to make RGGI as strong as possible and to prevent the bill from being hijacked by Senator Sweeney on behalf of big oil (which it ultimately was, resulting in editorial boards and most NJ environmental groups to OPPOSE the final version of RGGI, see: Lame Global Warming Bill Goes to Governor.)

But two groups, NJ Audubon and American Littoral Society were working quietly behind the scenes NOT on strengthening the RGGI bill, but on seeking special amendments to essentially earmark RGGI revenues to their organizations and pet projects. 

Specifically, NJA and ALS met quietly with NJ DEP Director of Policy & Planning Jeanne Herb to secure earmarks of RGGI funds for carbon sequestration.

DEP supported these amendments and deceptively conveyed them to the Legislature as DEP amendments – thus disguising the special interests NJA and ALS behind them and essentially laundering special interest earmarks.

Here they are: (see Section 7.b.(4))