Upcoming NJCRC Coffee Chats Explore NJ PACT-REAL Initiatives and Coastal Protection

New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection is now accepting public comment on new rules designed to protect the state and its residents from climate threats such as sea-level rise, coastal storm surge, flooding, and stormwater management, while also improving water quality, protecting natural resources, and streamlining the permitting processes for resilient investments in New Jersey’s communities and economy.

The NJ Coastal Resilience Collaborative (NJCRC) has two upcoming Coffee Chats that will explore these new rules - officially titled NJ Protecting Against Climate Threats - Resilient Environments and Landscapes (NJ PACT-REAL) - and how they will help prepare us for the future.
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The first session is set for Wednesday, October 16 at 10 a.m. It will look at Coastal Protection & Natural Enhancements and features Tim Dillingham, the American Littoral Society's Executive Director, along with Tony MacDonald of the Urban Coast Institute and Matt von der Hayden of Stafford Township, NJ.

The second session will take place Thursday, October 17 at 10 a.m. and focus on Stormwater & Flood Hazards. Panelists will include Anushi Garg of the Environmental Defense Fund; Caleb Stratton from the City of Hoboken; Christopher Schmitt, of GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc.; and Lindsey Massih from NJ Future.

You can register to participate in either or both of these Coffee Chats. They will be conducted in a webinar format via Zoom, with only facilitators and panelists shown on camera. Attendees will not have the ability to come off mute, unless approved by a facilitator.

Questions from participants may be posted through the chat box, which will allow them to be addressed at the end of each session. The conversation will help dispel common myths about how these rules would affect coastal communities, point out positives of applying the proposed rules, and examine some of the tools that can help coastal communities implement the rules. 

In 2020, Gov. Phil Murphy issued Executive Order No. 100, which required NJDEP to begin a regulatory reform effort to help reduce greenhouse gases and other climate pollutant emissions while making our natural and built environments more resilient to the inevitable impacts of climate change.  

These reforms were said to represent a PACT with the current residents of the state to help stave off the worst consequences of climate change and adapt to those already occurring, while also creating a more sustainable and resilient world for our children and grandchildren.
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The NJ DEP is accepting written comments on the rules through November 3, 2024. NJDEP encourages submission of comments electronically at: https://dep.nj.gov/rules/rule-comment-form/.  Find more information on submitting comments on the NJDEP website.