By Dari Kotzker
NJ Today
A coalition of environmental groups held a press conference on the State House steps today to kick off their campaign for the override of the fracking waste ban bill before the legislature breaks for the summer. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club, says they have more than 100 volunteers and coalition members that plan to talk to legislators about the override. The bill passed the legislature with bipartisan support (Assembly 56-19 and Senate 30-5), but the governor vetoed it in September, so an override vote of 27 votes is needed to protect New Jersey against this drilling process.
According to the Sierra Club, fracking waste is exempted from critical federal protections regulating the disposal of hazardous water and hazardous materials, which can cause increased risks to public health and the environment.
Tittel says he’s confident the vote to override the bill will be posted before the summer break, but they technically have until January.