The only New Jersey governor without an environmental legacy

In his final State of the State address this week, Gov. Phil Murphy failed to mention the environment, climate change, or any environmental accomplishments. That speaks volumes.

Every New Jersey governor in modern history left behind a defining environmental achievement:

Meyner created Green Acres.

Hughes protected the Meadowlands.

Cahill established the Department of Environmental Protection and the Coastal Area Facility Review Act.

Byrne saved the Pinelands and enacted the Spill Act.

Kean passed the Freshwater Wetlands Act.

Florio enacted the Pollution Prevention Act and Clean Water Enforcement Act.

Whitman preserved open space.

McGreevey protected the Highlands and advanced clean cars.

Codey expanded solar energy.

Corzine’s climate legislation strengthened flood protections.

Even Gov. Christie — despite dismantling environmental safeguards — managed to pass the fertilizer ban.

Gov. Murphy did not.

A record of rollbacks, not progress

Rather than rebuilding environmental protections, Murphy entrenched Christie-era damage:

• He appointed a Department of Environmental Protection commissioner with a background as a lawyer and lobbyist for corporate polluters.
• Christie’s environmental rollbacks were largely left untouched.
• Many of Christie’s appointees remain embedded on the Highlands and Pinelands commissions.
• The Department of Environmental Protection budget was cut to 15% below Christie levels, with 400 fewer staff than under Christie.
• The Division of Enforcement was eliminated.
• Murphy became the first governor in New Jersey history to grant polluters a “holiday” through the Grace Period Law.

This was not neglect. It was a choice.

Climate rhetoric, policy failure

Murphy talked about climate leadership while weakening flood protections during a worsening climate crisis. He gambled on offshore wind and lost — leaving New Jersey with emissions increases, but without resilience investments or enforceable climate action.

The result: goals without substance, promises without delivery.

Parks, wildlife, and public trust undermined

• The bald eagle was removed from the state endangered species list, opening vulnerable waterfronts to development.
• Deferred maintenance in state parks exploded to $725 million, up from $400 million under Christie, a stunning abdication of stewardship.

The silence says everything

Gov. Murphy’s failure to mention the environment in his final address was not an oversight. It was an admission.

There was no environmental legacy to celebrate — only missed opportunities, weakened protections and a public trust left worse than he found it.