USA – NEW JERSEY Law and Practice Contributed by: Nicole Dory, Christina Sartorio Ku, Meredith Rubin and Camryn Goldstein, Connell Foley LLP
At the federal level, the United States EPA maintains oversight over Region 2, which includes New Jersey, and ensures implementation of the CWA, the CAA, and other federal environmental statutes. NJDEP retains delegated authority for certain federal permits, including wetlands, National Pollutant Discharge Elim- ination System, CAA, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) permitting programmes. Other regulatory bodies responsible for environmental policy and enforcement include county and municipal envi- ronmental and health agencies, as well as special- ised boards like the New Jersey Sports and Expo- sition Authority (NJSEA), the Pinelands Council, and the Tidelands Resource Council, which have limited jurisdiction. 2.2 Co-Operation Mechanisms for co-operation between the regulated entities and environmental regulatory authorities in New Jersey are extensive. With regard to environmen- tal permitting, NJDEP encourages early and consist- ent communication during the permitting process, as well as during compliance and remediation processes. Applicants and permittees communicate with NJDEP’s staff directly during pre-application and technical meetings, as well as through reporting systems that monitor permit compliance. Other formal mechanisms for co-operation with NJDEP include administrative consent orders and voluntary disclosure programmes. In the case of environmental remediation, NJDEP has also established the LSRP programme under the SRRA, which allows parties responsible for reme- diation of contamination to hire an LSRP to oversee remediation of a property and self-report compliance and non-compliance to NJDEP. 3. Environmental Protections 3.1 Protection of Environmental Assets New Jersey’s significant environmental protection statutes include the Air Pollution Control Act, Clean Water Enforcement Act, the Soil Erosion and Sedi- ment Control Act, and the Endangered and Nongame Species Conservation Act. The NJDEP Fish and Wild- life’s Endangered and Nongame Species Program cre- ates lists to monitor the status of wildlife.
Additionally, the Pinelands Protection Act, Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act, Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA), and Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act regulate development in their respective regions. New Jersey also has comprehensive air per- mitting and water permitting programmes regulated by NJDEP. NJDEP conducts ambient air quality moni- toring to assess compliance with air quality standards and monitors water standard compliance through the New Jersey Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NJPDES). Given New Jersey’s significant coastline, under CAFRA and the Coastal Zone Management Rules, NJDEP protects coastal ecosystems such as wet- lands, dunes, and beaches through sustainable land use practices. With respect to regulating agricultural activities, NJDEP sets forth water usage regulations for such activities but also protects such activities by reducing regulatory burdens under the Highlands Water Protec- tion and Planning Act. NJDEP also reviews environmental impact assess- ments for developments to assess interference with natural habitats and the environment. The Spill Compensation and Control Act (Spill Act) also allows the state to recover damages to natural resources from polluters who have created such dam- ages. 3.2 Breaching Protections In New Jersey, strict liability typically applies in civ- il enforcement of breaches of environmental law. Enforcement mechanisms range from administrative settlements to civil penalties to criminal prosecu- tion. The federal EPA Region 2 also enforces federal laws and regulations governing air, water and waste. NJDEP may revoke, modify or suspend permits and issue summons for violations that may be enforced in municipal court. New Jersey’s Environmental Rights Act (ERA) also provides a private right of action to citizens to file actions against those who commit violations of envi- ronmental laws in the event a private party believes
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