NJ Energy Profile & Impact of Individual Plants and Refineries

Contributors: Evan Wang and Alice Feng

Introduction

This article outlines a general overview of energy usage in New Jersey, as well as insight into overall trends that may prove useful in guiding future decision-making processes. 

Background Information: Policies Enacted

  • NJ Renewable Portfolio Standard (set in 2018):

    • 21% of electricity sold in state has to be renewable by 2021 (which has already been met), 35% by 2025, and 50% by 2030

  • Energy Master Plan: Pathway to 2050

    • Plan set in 2019 to meet all of the state’s energy needs with renewable tech by 2050

  • Transitional Renewable Energy Certificate (TREC) program opened May 2020, will continue for 15 years

    • Utilities (electricity providers) can buy certificates from homeowners who are generating solar power to help meet their Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS)

    • TREC differ from the previous solar renewable energy certificate (SREC) because TREC pricing will be fixed instead of market-based, and a value of a certificate will now depend on the type of solar panel system installed

    • Overall means that more solar energy needs to be generated per certificate; these changes recognize that there should be less support for sustainable solar industry growth

General Statistics

  • In 2019, natural gas and nuclear power together accounted for 94% of the state’s electricity generation

Trends by sector

  • Trends by sector

    • Relative decrease in energy usage by the industrial sector from 1960-2015, reflecting general decrease of manufacturing and industrial activity in the region

    • Sector that consumes the largest portion of energy continues to be transportation, which accounted for 37% of energy consumed in 2017

Renewable energy

  • NJ’s electricity sector’s percentage of energy from renewables, at 4.8% in 2017, is lower than the U.S.’s average of 16% 

    • Largely because NJ doesn’t have many hydropower or onshore wind resources

    • NJ is a leader in solar energy, #7 in the nation, and #1 for megawatts/square mile

    • Governor Murphy pushing for offshore wind: 7,500 megawatts by 2035

  • In 2019, New Jersey was the country’s seventh largest solar energy producer, and 80% of the total renewable energy electricity generation came from solar energy

  • Nuclear Power is really important, provides over 50% of the state’s energy generation from a mostly carbon-free source

    • If nuclear power plants close before the end of their licenses, (and without some big boost in the renewable sector) fossil fuels would have to increase to make up for the loss

Risk Profile by Energy Sector

  • Most common natural hazard is Thunderstorm and Lightning, which on average occurs once every 5.5 days from March to October

  • Floods caused the greatest overall property loss at $131 million per year, followed by tornados at 86 million per year

  • Electricity Sector

    • The leading cause of electric outages during 2008 to 2013 was weather/falling trees

    • Between 2008 and 2013, the month of July saw the greatest number of electric outages

  • Petroleum 

    • The leading type of event affecting the transport of petroleum product by rail and truck during 1986 to 2014 was Incorrect Operation for rail transport and Miscellaneous/Unknown for truck transport, with an average 0.8 and 8.6 incidents per year, respectively.

    • Derailment or Collision/Rollovers during transport caused the most economic loss at $220,000 per year

    • For crude oil and refined product pipelines: from 1986-2014, corrosion caused the most economic loss at $196,000 per year, with the most frequent even being equipment failure

    • Leading cause of petroleum refinery disruptions from 2003 to 2014 was equipment failure or damage, and the average production impact from all disruptions was 37.2 thousand barrels per day

  • Natural Gas

    • Event that caused the most economic damage from 1986-2014 is excavation damage at $2,366,000 per year

Environmental Impact of Power Plants and Refineries in New Jersey

  •  Meadowlands plant/ The NJ TRANSITGRID Project (Proposed)

    • Location: Kearny, Hudson County

    • GHG Emission per year (estimate): 0.6 million metric tons

    • Initiated by the Christie Administration after Superstorm Sandy, NJ TRANSITGRID Project was originally envisioned as a natural gas turbine powered facility, prior to advancements in renewable technologies. The Murphy Administration is committed to a process that re-envisions the design of this project to prioritize green technology and will deliver power that aligns with Governor Murphy’s clean energy priorities 

    • This power plant was proposed to burn fracked gas and be constructed on a flood-prone Superfund site, which was protected by a cap covering toxic materials, risks disturbing the cap and allowing toxic materials to leach into the region's water. In addition, the pollution brought by the project would disproportionately impact low-income communities, adding on to the immeasurable cost of public health. Clean energy alternatives such as a solar farm have been proposed by environmentalists to replace the current plant. 

    • In June 2020, Hoboken City became the first municipality to oppose the plan after a unanimous vote. As of October 2020, NJ Transit officials outlined a plan to find engineers and consultants with the expertise to design the $577 million Transitgrid back-up power system in Kearny in as green a way as possible, with a goal of awarding a construction contract in Dec. 2022. However, a gas power plant is not entirely off the table if a suitable design can’t be found.

  • Phillips 66 Bayway Refinery

    • Location: Linden/ Elizabeth, Union County

    • GHG Emission per year: 2.6 million metric tons

    • Phillips 66 Bayway Refinery is the northernmost refinery on the East Coast of the United States. It converts crude oil into gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, propane and heating oil. 

    • The refinery has had and continues to have environmental issues. In late 2003, the refinery came under scrutiny for a possibly abnormal cancer rate among its work population. A 2010 investigative report conducted by WABC-TV characterizes the Bayway Refinery as a "repeat offender" of environmental regulations. The refinery has since been subject to scrutiny by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The refinery was the famous toxic site in question in the major $225 million Exxon Mobil-New Jersey Environmental Contamination settlement in 2015. The refinery has been cited almost 200 times since 2005 for violation of state environmental laws. It is also ranked as the 32nd worst water polluter in the country.

  • Red Oak Power

    • Location: Sayreville, Middlesex County

    • GHG Emission per year: 2 million metric tons

    • Red Oak Power, owned by Morgan Stanley Infrastructure, is an 830-megawatt combined cycle gas turbine power plant. A 2013 report named it as one of the largest single sources of carbon pollution in the state.

  • Paulsboro Refining Company

    • Location: Paulsboro, Gloucester County 

    • GHG Emission per year: 1.8 million metric tons

    • Paulsboro Refining Company started operation over a century ago and currently have over 475 employees. In one year, the refinery produces gasoline to fill up 84 million cars, diesel to refuel one million trucks, Jet fuel to fill 225 thousand jets, and heating oil for over 2 million homes. With the expansion of the NJ Turnpike and other infrastructure improvements, the Refinery has become the largest asphalt producer on the east coast. 

    • In 2015, the refinery was cited by environmental activists for processing more than 2,666 barrels per day of crude oil directly imported from the Amazon River Basin in South America. In addition, the refinery is cited as one of the worst water polluters in New Jersey. Based on the EPA's Toxic Release Inventory, the refinery has dumped around 800,000 pounds of toxins into the Woodbury Creek Watershed, which feeds the Delaware River.

  • Woodbridge Energy Center

    • Location: Woodbridge, Middlesex County

    • GHG Emission per year: 1.7 million metric tons

    • The Woodbridge Energy Center (WEC) is a 725 megawatt natural gas-fueled combined-cycle power generation facility that generates enough electricity to power more than 700,000 homes. According to Competitive Power Ventures (CPV), the owner of the site, the facility utilizes advanced generation technology, making it “one of the nation’s cleanest and most efficient power generation facilities”. 

    • However, the facility uses predominantly contaminated “grey water” from the nearby Middlesex County Utilities Authority to meet facility cooling needs. In addition, as CPV seeks approvals to build a second plant adjacent to its current unit, environmental activists argue the project flies in face of clean-energy goals. The second plant, along with three other proposed plants, will undoubtedly bring a major increase in greenhouse-gas emissions to New Jersey that will threaten the state’s sustainable energy goals.

  • Newark Energy Center

    • Location: Newark, Essex County

    • GHG Emission per year: 1.5 million metric tons

    • The Newark Energy Center is a natural gas power plant that is one of many air pollution sources in already overburdened environmental justice communities. Environmental activists have long advocated on more regulations on the facility. Newark's Ironbound community blasted a plan that expands the amount of sulfuric acid used by Newark Energy Center's natural gas power plant, which was eventually approved by a New Jersey appellate court. Under the permit, the Center is allowed to use contaminated water (gray water) obtained from the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission in its cooling tower. The permit also allows the Center to use sulfuric acid to lower the gray water's pH level. 

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