Tuesday, April 30, 2013
BPU likely to approve scaled-back proposal creating 45 megawatts of grid-supply solar-energy systems in NJ
- GOING GREEN
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Tuesday, April 30
Public Service Electric & Gas is expected to win approval to expand its aggressive efforts to build solar-energy systems in the state, although on a smaller scale than what the Newark-based utility proposed last August. The contested settlement, expected to be approved by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities next month, would allow the utility to spend $247 million to build 42 megawatts (mw) of grid-supply solar-energy systems, most of which would be located on brownfields, landfills and “areas of historic fill.” It also would allow another 3 mw in pilot projects on parking lots and as part of grid-security projects. Besides the grid-supply projects, the utility also will be able to finance another 97.5 megawatts of new solar-energy …
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Annual report lists 25 percent in poor condition or not built to handle 21st century traffic.
- GOVERNMENT
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Sunday, April 28
One in four New Jersey bridges is in poor condition or inadequate to handle modern traffic loads, according to an analysis of National Bridge Inventory data. Of almost 6,600 bridges included in the 2012 inventory, 9.3 percent were rated structurally deficient, meaning they are in deteriorated condition or the waterway opening under the bridge is insufficient. Another 16.3 percent are considered functionally obsolete, indicating they do not meet current standards for lane and shoulder widths or vertical clearances or they occasionally flood. These ratings do not mean the bridges are unsafe, according to federal highway officials, but that they need rehabilitation, repair or replacement. The condition of the state’s bridges was one of …
Sunday, February 24, 2013
'Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present,’ reads open letter to American people.
By Tom Johnson, NJ Spotlight It is no secret that Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on New Jersey power's grid, leaving millions of customers without electricity -- many for a week or longer. Get used to it, warns a new report. Extreme weather is likely to increase not only in frequency but intensity, and the nation’s energy facilities will continue to suffer major disruptions, particularly those located in coastal regions, according to a draft National Climate Assessment report. The likely consequences of those storms and of a warmer planet will be to ramp up peak electricity demand in regions like the Northeast, requiring additional generation and distribution facilities to be built, the report said. For consumers, that could mean as much as…
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Headed to the Senate: 22 measures that address everything from gun licensing and safety training to ammunition clips and tighter restrictions on who can buy guns
Regardless of where they stand on gun control, the audience in the packed Statehouse gallery witnessed a small piece of history yesterday, as Democratic leaders passed a package of 22 bills that impose new curbs on access to guns, as well as other gun-related legislation. Many of the bills were approved with little or no Republican support in the Assembly. The package now heads to the Senate for passage. At this point, the key question is what will Gov. Chris Christie do when the bills land on his desk. Last month, he created a bipartisan task force to look at the issue of gun violence and asked for a report within the coming month. If the task force meets its deadline, it would be within the 45 days Christie has to either veto or sign …
Monday, February 4, 2013
Education department confident that testing rollout will hit its mark, some school administrators uneasy about 2014-2015 deadline
The future of state testing is starting to be felt in New Jersey’s school districts, as schools push to get up to speed with the technology that will be needed for the new online assessments. The testing -- which is being developed by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) -- is about to go through its first pilot evaluations in a about a dozen districts. State officials said it remains on track to be in place for the 2014-2015 school year. Translation: by the spring of 2015, close to 1 million students between Grades 3 and 11 are expected to sit at laptops or tablets taking their annual state math and language arts exams. That will be no small technological feat for an education infrastructure that …
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Some educators suggest student surveys should be part of teacher-effectiveness evaluations
With all the debate in New Jersey and elsewhere about evaluating teachers on how well their students perform, another idea is starting to surface that could prove equally provocative: judging teachers by what their students think of them. One of the options available to New Jersey school districts as they build teacher evaluation systems is including student surveys among the “multiple measures” of student achievement. The idea is gaining popularity, at least among policy-makers. Several districts that have been part of the pilot program testing evaluation models have included or plan to include student surveys, although not necessarily as part of a teacher's grade. In Alexandria, for instance, teachers survey their students and are …
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
A look at some of the key educational issues facing New Jersey in 2013.
Tenure reform, teacher evaluation, charters, school turnarounds, state oversight . . . There was no shortage of education news in 2012, but it's the coming calendar year that will see those issues put to their first real tests. Throw in an election year for the governor and Legislature, and that leaves a lot of unanswered questions. As 2113 gets into gear, here's a look at some of the more pressing ones that are likely to be addressed -- if not answered fully in the coming year. At the start of the year, the selection of teacher evaluation systems appear largely on track. The law originally required that every district have an evaluation system approved for teachers and principals by the end of 2012, but the state has already shown some …
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
But marriage-equality supporters here prefer action by state Legislature
- GOVERNMENT
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Tuesday, November 13, 2012
by Hank Kalet, NJSpotlight.com The success of marriage-equality ballot initiatives in three states on Tuesday demonstrates that voters are growing more accepting, but should not be used as models for legalization in New Jersey, supporters of same-sex marriage believe. Voters in Maine, Maryland and Washington approved referendum questions Tuesday that made it legal for same-sex couples to marry in those states. They were the first such referendum questions to be approved in the nation, after 30 previous ballot initiatives around the country either banned same-sex marriage or reinforced existing bans. Supporters of marriage equality in New Jersey, including Garden State Equality and the sponsors of bills that would legalize same-sex marriage…
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Group argues that 2012 election is critical for environment and public health
- GOVERNMENT
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Sunday, September 30, 2012
By Tom Johnson, NJSpotlight.com The New Jersey Environmental Federation is not showing much love for the GOP these days. The group, one of the largest environmental organizations active in the state, yesterday endorsed Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep Frank Pallone, a couple of Democrats it has backed in the past. The federation, long considered a key ally of the Democrats, raised eyebrows when it endorsed Republican Chris Christie for governor three years ago. It seems to have rediscovered its roots, saving its most blistering criticism for the Republican members of Congress in a statement announcing its endorsements yesterday. “Since January 2011, the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives has voted 297 times to weaken public health and …
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Media specialists argue that guidance and research skills are needed more than ever in the Internet age
Once the staple of nearly every school, the school librarian and media specialist is feeling a bit underappreciated -- if not under siege -- these days. Over the past five years, the number of certified library/media specialists in New Jersey’s public schools has dropped by almost 15 percent, according to thestatewide association, and its own membership has been cut almost in half. There were 1,580 certified specialists statewide last year, down from 1,850 in 2007-2008, serving roughly 2,500 schools. The biggest contributor to the drop was the state’s budget crisis two years ago. Library positions were some of the first to be cut by districts looking to trim staff, association officers and local officials said. here has been little …
Diane Schwarz
12:19 pm on Wednesday, May 1, 2013
I understand a homeowner can install solar energy that ends up with no cost! How does one do that? more ›