|
 Environmental
activists said yesterday Gov. Jon Corzine is emerging as the worst
governor for preserving open space since saving land from development
became an issue in the 1970s.
Six of the activists, leaders of
the "Keep
It Green" campaign, said New Jerseyans have a
misconception that Corzine is strong on open space preservation. They
complained the governor has failed to keep a promise to re-fund open
space preservation.
"The New Jersey public has
been in the dark about Governor Corzine's lack of leadership on funding
for open space preservation, giving him high marks. New Jerseyans should
revise that rating," said Dina Mottola Jaborska, director of
Environment New Jersey. "No governor for two decades has done less
to preserve open space than Governor Corzine. Year after year, his
inaction has let the state's open space program wither on the vine, with
no permanent funding solution in sight."
The governor's office referred
questions to the. Department
of Environmental Protection. Spokeswoman Elaine
Makatura said, "Generally, I would say that while open space
presently remains a high priority for the governor, the funding is one
of several environmental and other spending priorities that face the
governor and the Legislature in these challenging times."
The news conference was held
hours before Corzine administration officials announced the current
state budget now has a $1.2 billion hole because of the economic
downturn and projected a $5 billion deficit for the following year.
Last year, Corzine and the
Legislature provided an emergency allocation of $200 million to keep the
Garden
State Preservation Trust funded through next June 30, but
the environmentalists said the money has been allocated for farmland,
open space and historic preservation projects, so the fund is
effectively broke. They want to see another $200 million allocated to
keep the GSPT funded through June 2010.
The environmental activists said
governors Brendan Byrne, Tom Kean, Jim Florio, Christie Whitman and
James E. McGreevey all took steps to provide millions of dollars for
open space preservation. Jeff Tittel, director of the Sierra
Club of New Jersey, said Corzine has provided corporate
tax breaks and building permit extensions to developers. "This may
be the most pro-sprawl administration we've seen in New Jersey
history," he said.
Makatura said, "I think
they are demonstrating selective memory when it comes to the governor's
excellent performance on preserving open space."
Tom Hester may be reached at thester@starledger.com
or (609) 292-0557.
|
