New Jersey will require building permits to consider climate change

“This is a big deal. For New Jersey to step to the forefront and say, ‘We’re going to look at future climate impacts, and that it’s going to be a driver of our decision-making’ — that’s exactly what all 50 states need to be doing.”

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New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy recently announced a new regulation that commits the state to achieve 50% clean energy by 2030 and 100% clean energy by 2050. 

One step the state will do to make this goal is to require builders to take the climate crisis into consideration when seeking Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) permits for a project. Specifically, the state will look at how the project will contribute to emissions and climate change. 

According to Digital Journal, the NJDEP is required to draft and propose regulations to integrate climate change considerations, such as sea-level rise, into its regulatory and permitting programs, including…land use permitting.

With the state’s 130-mile long coastline, one climate factor that will be looked at prior to each project’s approval is its effects on the rising sea-level. 

“Quite frankly, it will be hard for future generations to create their Jersey Shore memories if the Jersey shore becomes only a memory. We are not gonna let this keep happening without a fight,” says Murphy. 

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