Gov. Phil Murphy has signed Executive Order No. 307, increasing New Jersey’s offshore wind goal by nearly 50% to 11,000 MW by 2040.
The order, which increases the state’s current goal of 7,500 MW, also directs the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to study the feasibility of increasing the target further.
Accompanying the executive order, Murphy also announced the release of the Green Jobs for a Sustainable Future report, created by the New Jersey Council on the Green Economy in partnership with the Governor’s Office of Climate Action and the Green Economy.
The report outlines recommendations and pathways for growing a demographically representative and inclusive green workforce as New Jersey pursues its clean energy future. Established during Murphy’s first term, the council comprises experts, advocates and leaders from across industry and organized labor. Murphy directed the council to prepare the report in order to promote diversity and opportunity in the green economy for environmental justice communities while making pathways to green jobs more accessible for workers, especially union members.
In addition to introducing the council’s report, Murphy also announced the release of an offshore wind jobs analysis and highlighted $10 million in new investments, which will guide and support the state as it prepares to execute a one-year action plan designed to generate good-paying jobs in the growing green economy. Several private sector partners, including Unilever, DSM, Hugo Neu, IKEA, Siemens, United and Hackensack Meridian Health, committed to supporting these crucial efforts by signing the Corporate Green Jobs Pledge.
“Extreme weather events and severe flooding across the country leave no room for doubt – the effects of climate change are becoming more impactful and more aggressive, and we must do the same,” says Murphy. “Our renewed and strengthened commitment to offshore wind development testifies to my administration’s understanding that, regardless of our impressive successes to date, there is always more that we can do to make New Jersey more sustainable while further advancing the state’s economic vitality. Indeed, the groundbreaking report prepared under the aegis of the Council of the Green Economy proves, now more than ever, that environmental health and economic health are inextricably connected.”
“Let there be no doubt that New Jersey is a leader when it comes to moving towards a green economy. These actions take us a few steps forward towards Gov. Murphy’s goal of becoming a 100 percent green-energy state by 2050,” comments First Lady Tammy Murphy, honorary chair of the Council on the Green Economy. “When that day comes, the Council on the Green Economy will have created an equitable workforce of well trained and skilled climate literate professionals who will continue the fight for generation to come against climate change.”
“These announcements underscore our determination to not only double our efforts in the fight against climate change, but to ensure that every New Jerseyan can reap the benefits of transitioning to a clean energy economy,” mentions Jane Cohen, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Climate Action and the Green Economy. “As we set our sights on even bolder offshore wind targets, we will strive toward the equitable development of a green economy that produces good-paying jobs, wage parity and long-term career opportunities for future generations.”
Read the report as well as additional comments from elected officials and organizational leaders here.
