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TagsCorzine touts own green master plan
BY TOM HESTER SR.
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie Monday unveiled an eight-point energy plan he would push if elected that would include making it easier to build solar energy projects and requiring the state to create solar energy farms at 800 open and closed landfills.
Christie would make the governor New Jersey chief energy advocate and attempt to attract renewable energy manufacturing to the state through tax breaks and promoting its skilled workforce.
The candidate is prepared to promote the plan Tuesday at a campaign stop in Robbinsville on Wednesday at stops in Ocean Township and Atlantic City.
"Considering there are currently over 800 active and closed landfills covering over 10,500 acres in our state, what better way to utilize this space more effectively than with solar farms,'' Christie's plan states.Christie would require that all landfills regulated by the New Jersey Department of Environment Protection install solar farms as part of their closure plans and on-going maintenance permits.
The way Christie sees it, solar applications should not have to seek use variances or zone changes. "A Christie administration will make it easier for prospective solar developers to site and build these facilities,'' the plan states. "Removing the uncertainty and delays inherent in local land use approvals (would provide incentive for) landowners and potential solar developers.''
The plan would also allow up to 20 percent of preserved farmland to be used for solar panel installation.
In his plan, Christie promises to act as an energy advocate and meet with foreign and domestic companies in an attempt to convince them that New Jersey is the place to manufacture energy.
"It will be job number one for Chris Christie to seek out these businesses and bring them home,'' the plan states.
Christie also pledges to attempt to leverage New Jersey's skilled workforce, technology base, manufacturing base and port facilities to make the state a leader in manufacturing renewable energy.
"New Jersey will undergo a brand makeover as part of the ‘Choose New Jersey Energy‘ campaign,'' the plan states. "Governor Christie will lead a campaign that will market and sell New Jersey's resources and undeniable potential to energy producers, innovators and developers.''
The plan states that as part of the New Jersey Partnership for Action, "Renew NJ'' will focus exclusively on the promotion of the state's resources and the development of renewable energy manufacturing. The plan calls for all economic development efforts related to renewable energy to be removed from the state Board of Public Utilities to "Renew NJ." "Renew NJ" would serve as a one-stop shop for companies - working to promote the state, market to prospective energy manufacturers both at home and abroad, deliver grants, loans and other state incentives in an efficient and timely manner.
The plan states that in order to make New Jersey an attractive place to manufacture energy, a Christie administration would offer a tax credit up to 100% of the corporate business taxes or the insurance premium tax for any wind turbine and manufacturing facility that locates in New Jersey. Christie believes the incentive would significantly erase the current disincentives in the state's tax policy, and would be an important tool to lure manufactures to the state.
Under the plan, New Jersey would create higher-paying clean energy production jobs in the first four years of a Christie administration. The plans states that while many renewable energy efforts focus mainly on the creation of lower paying, efficiency jobs, such as solar panel installers, Christie is committed to a 5/1 ratio of production jobs.
These clean energy production jobs would pay more, provide long-term stability and create a lasting investment in New Jersey's economy.
"While New Jersey has one of the strongest renewable portfolio standards in the country, according to the US Energy Information Administration,'' the plan states, "the state actually ranks 43rd when it comes to generating renewable energy.
While Christie is in Robbinsville, Gov. Jon Corzine will also be campaigning on the renewable energy issue when he joins officials of Princeton Power Systems Inc. in West Windsor to celebrate the opening of the company's new facility on the Sarnoff campus.
Princeton Power is developing advanced power conversion technologies that provide a more reliable and cost-effective means for converting electric power cleanly and efficiently. With the help of state assistance, Princeton Power has grown from a staff of three to 30 over the last eight years and its new headquarters will accommodate the company's expected future growth.
"It is good to see the Christie campaign finally releasing something that might be considered a "detail(ed)" plan,'' said Sean Darcy, a Corzine campaign spokesman. "Unfortunately, giving 100 percent tax credits does not constitute an energy policy. In fact, providing 100 percent tax breaks for corporations is reminiscent of the type of policies given to us by George W. Bush for the past eight years.''
"Under Governor Corzine, New Jersey has become a national leader in clean energy,'' Sarcy maintained. " We have one of the strongest solar programs in the nation, the country's first offshore wind project in development, and the most aggressive greenhouse-gas emission reduction targets in the nation. By embracing new approaches to energy, New Jersey is providing the pathway to both economic prosperity and environmental protection. Further, implementation of the Governor's Energy Master Plan will help ease energy costs in the short-term, create jobs, grow clean energy businesses and establish the clean energy industry as a cornerstone of the State's economy. The plan will stimulate nearly $33 billion worth of investment into the State's energy infrastructure, create 23,000 green collar jobs, save consumers nearly $30 billion and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the electricity and heating fuel sectors.''