EDF lauds New Jersey Governor Christie’s move to upgrade state’s vulnerable energy infrastructure

(New York, NY – October 10, 2012) Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) applauds Governor Christie’s allocation of $25 million in federal funds to local governments to develop alternative energy projects designed to make New Jersey’s critical facilities resilient and reliable in the face of power outages.  The partnership between the State of New Jersey, the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which has identified and is funding energy resilient projects for critical facilities, is a model that EDF believes can be applied more broadly – not only in New Jersey and the Superstorm Sandy-effected region, but nationally where extreme weather events are increasingly leaving communities in the dark.

“Extreme weather and vulnerable energy infrastructure came together with a vengeance during Superstorm Sandy,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund. “A smarter, more flexible power grid is central to resilience, safety and storm recovery. Governor Christie’s actions will help make New Jersey’s energy infrastructure cleaner, smarter and stronger than ever.”