ASSEMBLY, No. 1310
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblymen CHARLES and DeCROCE
An Act directing the Department of Transportation to establish a demonstration project.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. The erection of noise barriers along the highways of this State has helped to alleviate the problems of noise pollution in densely populated areas bordering these highways;
b. The Department of Transportation has recently been required to use State funds to offset the lack of funding from federal noise barrier programs, thereby causing project delays while an increasing number of municipalities are waiting for noise barriers to be built in their communities;
c. The State has spent $115.5 million on its noise barrier program, with concrete or wooden barriers having a cost of $2 million per mile, while other surrounding states have spent considerably less on their noise barrier programs;
d. The State needs to examine the problems of the cost and maintenance of noise barriers, including the cost of graffiti removal, and to study viable alternatives to the current materials used in these barriers, such as the use of recycled plastic, as is being done in the State of California, with the intent of creating a potential market for recycled materials;
e. It is in the public interest for the Department of Transportation to develop a demonstration project at three sites in the northern, central and southern regions of the State to examine the benefits and risks of using recycled materials to the maximum extent possible in the construction of highway noise barriers.
2. The Commissioner of Transportation, after consultation with the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection, shall develop a demonstration project to examine the benefits and risks of using recycled materials to the greatest extent possible in the construction of highway noise barriers. As part of this demonstration project, the Commissioner of Transportation shall choose three sites, one in each of the northern, central and southern regions of the State where the project is to take place. The Commissioner of Transportation, after consultation with the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection, and after reviewing federal engineering standards, shall develop criteria for the nature and composition of recycled materials to be used in the noise barriers. Such criteria shall include, but not be limited to, structural engineering needs, acoustical effects, cost effectiveness, performance and safety standards, aesthetics, use of recycled plastics, creation of markets for recyclable materials, and standards for repelling graffiti. In order to carry out the purposes of this act, the Commissioner of Transportation is authorized to contract for and to accept any gifts or grants or loans of funds or property or financial or other aid in any form from the United States of America or any agency or instrumentality thereof, or from the State or any agency, instrumentality or political subdivision thereof, or from any other source including assistance from appropriate sources at Rutgers, the State University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Stevens Institute of Technology, and to comply, subject to the provisions of the act, with the terms and conditions thereof. The Commissioner of Transportation shall prepare a report to the Legislature within two years from the effective date of this act, identifying the department's progress in using these materials and any technical findings regarding the costs and benefits of such usage.
For the purposes of this section, "northern region" means the counties of Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex, Union and Warren; "central region" means the counties of Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Somerset; and "southern region" means the remaining seven counties of the State.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
While the construction of noise barriers has helped to alleviate the problems of noise pollution in densely populated areas, DOT has recently been required to use State funds to offset the lack of federal funding for noise barrier programs. The State has spent $115.5 million on its noise barrier program, erecting concrete or wooden barriers at a cost of $2 million per mile, while other surrounding states have spent considerably less on their noise barrier programs. The State needs to examine the problems of the cost and maintenance of noise barriers, including the cost of graffiti removal, and to study viable alternatives to the current materials used in these barriers, such as the use of recycled plastic, as is being done in the State of California, with the intent of creating a potential market for recycled materials.
The bill achieves this goal by directing the Commissioner of Transportation, after consultation with the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection, to establish a demonstration project, with sites in the northern, central and southern regions of the State, to examine the benefits and risks of using recycled materials to the maximum extent possible in the construction of highway noise barriers. The commissioner is to report to the Legislature within two years identifying the department's progress in using this material and any technical findings regarding the costs and benefits of such usage.
Directs DOT Commissioner to establish demonstration project to maximize use of recycled materials in highway noise barriers.