Christie Endorses New Energy Plan

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has signed on to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the federal government and fellow East Coast governors to promote the development of offshore wind power. The agreement, which establishes an Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Consortium, will help to facilitate federal-state cooperation for commercial wind development on the Outer Continental Shelf off of the Atlantic coast.
“The environmental tragedy in the Gulf dramatically demonstrates the need to create safe and reliable ways to produce, distribute and use energy,” Governor Christie said. “Developing and investing in renewable energy resources such as wind power are key to the future economic growth of New Jersey and the Atlantic Coast Region and I am pleased to work with my colleagues as we explore this important energy market.”
In addition to Governor Christie, the agreement was signed by the governors of Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.
This new consortium will develop an action plan to establish the priorities, goals, specific recommendations and steps for achieving the objectives outlined in the MOU agreement. Several wind energy projects for the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf have been proposed for East Coast states, including New Jersey, well-positioning the state and region to tap into the industry’s enormous potential, creating thousands of manufacturing, construction and operations jobs of the future.
"This is a very exciting development for New Jersey,'' added DEP Commissioner Bob Martin. "It opens the door of economic opportunity, allowing us to lure companies that manufacture the components of wind turbines, creating green jobs to harness the power of nature and provide our residents with a renewable energy supply.''
Three of the first five "interim policy leases'' approved by the federal government to explore offshore wind projects are for tracts located off the coast of New Jersey.