By
- Taylor McFarland
Recently business interests painted a grim yet distorted picture of the proposed Climate Superfund Act. They labeled the Polluters Pay bill a cash grab and a tax on the middle class.
This corporate scare tactic shifts responsibility away from the multibillion-dollar fossil fuel industry and onto New Jersey families.
The reality is simple: our communities are already paying the price for climate change through property damage, health risks and economic losses.
The Climate Superfund Act would help ensure that the corporations responsible for a significant share of that damage finally help cover the costs.
We no longer have the luxury of treating climate change as a future threat. This summer alone, New Jersey has been battered by relentless storms, record-breaking heat and catastrophic flash flooding. These are not isolated weather events. They are part of the new reality of a warming planet.
When extreme storms hit, floodwaters do more than inundate streets and basements. They can also reach some of New Jersey’s most hazardous toxic waste sites, increasing the risk that contaminants spread into surrounding communities.
A local crisis with statewide consequences
As a resident of Keyport, I see this threat up close. Communities like ours face serious risks from contaminated sites such as the Keyport Aeromarine Landfill.
Decades of hazardous leakage have left local families worried about their health and safety. Reports of hundreds of cancer cases in the surrounding area have only heightened those concerns.
In low-lying coastal communities, flash floods and storm surge can stir up legacy pollutants and carry them into neighborhoods, homes and waterways.
The situation is made worse by a lack of funding. Neither the borough nor the state has enough money to fully remediate the Aeromarine Landfill.
As a result, officials often look to developers to finance cleanups through projects such as high-impact commercial truck depots. New Jersey needs a better solution than relying on large-scale development to pay for environmental remediation.
Investing in resilience before the next storm
New Jersey needs significantly more funding for long-term climate resilience, not just emergency response. The state needs resources to clean up toxic sites in flood-prone areas and a sustainable funding stream to address contaminated properties across New Jersey.
The Climate Superfund Act, also known as the Polluters Pay to Make New Jersey More Affordable Act, would be one part of that solution. The legislation would establish a $50 billion fund paid for by major greenhouse gas emitters. Those resources could help communities:
- Upgrade vulnerable infrastructure.
- Build stronger flood protections.
- Remediate contaminated sites before future storms strike.
- Reduce the long-term costs of climate disasters.
Beyond funding, New Jersey also needs strong implementation of the NJ PACT REAL regulations to protect public health, critical infrastructure, residents and taxpayer dollars from escalating climate risks.
The stakes extend far beyond individual homes. According to climate projections, one in three public assets in New Jersey, including schools, hospitals, water treatment facilities and fire stations, could be located in active flood zones by 2050.
It is time to enact meaningful environmental protections, secure the resources our flood-prone communities need and require major polluters to help pay for the damage they have caused. Our communities, our health and our future depend on it.
Taylor McFarland is the conservation program manager for the Sierra Club New Jersey Chapter.
