Highlands Action Alert - June 10

The 15-year effort to preserve the water supply, forests and farmland, wildlife habitat, recreational and scenic resources of the New Jersey Highlands is nearing an important milestone. Over the next four weeks the Legislature will consider the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act, a comprehensive bill to protect the Highlands. If we are successful, we will have passed the most important piece of environmental legislation in New Jersey in 25 years. If we fail, the Legislature is unlikely to take this issue up again.

Although we took the first step toward passage in May - the Assembly Environment Committee approved the bill on May 17 - we still have several critical steps to go before the NJ Legislature adjourns—less than a month. Supporters of Highlands preservation have done a tremendous job to date, but we need an even bigger push over the next four weeks.

Our current focus is on the Senate Environment Committee, the Assembly Appropriations Committee, and Assembly leadership. To help pass this bill, we need as many supporters as possible to take the following actions:

· Come to Trenton on June 10 for a Lobby Day

· Come to Trenton to attend the next meeting of the Senate Environment Committee

(tentatively scheduled on June 14)

· Make the phone calls to the legislators listed below as soon as possible

· Send a letter to your editor

Information on each of these actions is provided below and on our website www.nynjtc.org (purple banner at the top).

1. Come to Trenton on June 10 for a Lobby Day. We will be scheduling meetings with key legislators, and it is critical that we have constituents and representatives of grassroots organizations at these meetings. We will be convening at 8:30 a.m. in Committee Room 16 on the Fourth Floor of the State House Annex, and you should plan on spending the entire day at the State House if possible. Please RSVP to Dawn Serra at 609-737-7263 or highlandsco@earthlink.net with your name, phone number, e-mail and your legislative district or your address if you don’t know your district (district information is available on the Legislature's web site at www.njleg.state.nj.us). Tell her you are a Trail Conference member. A continental breakfast and lunch items will be available in the committee room. You will receive directions and further details prior to the event.

2. Come to Trenton for the next meeting of the Senate Environment Committee. This meeting is currently scheduled for 10 a.m. on June 14. More information will be made available closer to the meeting date, but it is important that we again counteract the presence of the builders with a large showing, so please put this meeting on your calendar and rsvp to Dawn Serra at 609-737-7263 or highlandsco@earthlink.net.

3. Call key legislators listed below TODAY and tell them:

· The Highlands provide drinking water and outdoor recreation for more than half of New Jersey’s residents (including, for committee members listed in bold below, residents in the member’s district);

· Without state legislation, that drinking water and open space will be degraded by sprawl;

· You urge them to protect the Highlands by doing everything in their power to ensure passage of S1/A2635 by the end of June.

Senate Environment Committee:

· Senator Stephen Sweeney, District 3 (All of Salem and parts of Cumberland and Gloucester Counties): (856) 251-9801

· Senator John Adler, District 6 (Part of Camden County): (856) 489-3442

· Senator Henry McNamara, District 40 (Parts of Bergen, Essex and Passaic Counties): (201) 848-9600

· Senator Andrew Ciesla, District 10 (Parts of Monmouth and Ocean Counties): (732) 840-9028

Assembly Leadership:

· Speaker Albio Sires, District 33 (Part of Hudson County): (201) 854-0900

· Majority Leader Joseph Roberts, District 5 (Parts of Camden and Gloucester Counties): (856) 742-7600

Assembly Appropriations Committee:

· Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman, District 15 (Part of Mercer County): (609) 292-0500

· Assemblywoman Nellie Pou, District 35 (Parts of Bergen and Passaic Counties): (973) 247-1555

· Assemblyman John Burzichelli, District 3 (All of Salem and parts of Cumberland and Gloucester Counties): (856) 251-9801

· Assemblyman Herb Conaway, Jr., District 7 (Parts of Burlington and Camden Counties): (856) 461-3997

· Assemblyman Steve Corodemus, District 11 (Part of Monmouth County): (732) 708-0900

· Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, District 20 (Part of Union County): (908) 624-0880

· Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, District 6 (Part of Camden County): (856) 783-0444

· Assemblyman Robert Gordon, District 38 (Part of Bergen County): (201) 703-9779

· Assemblyman Mims Hackett, District 27 (Part of Essex County): (973) 762-1886

· Assemblyman John Wisniewski, District 19 (Part of Middlesex County): (732) 316-1885

You should also call your own Senators and Assembly people with the same message. Information on legislators and the districts they represent can be found on the Legislature's web page (www.njleg.state.nj.us).

If you have any questions about these activities, please call Ramon McMillan or Edward Goodell at the Trail Conference (201-512-9348).

Thank you for your help in protecting the NJ Highlands!

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