WHEREAS, the State of New Jersey borders many navigable waters of the United States, which contain valuable fisheries, wildlife and other natural resources and provide for the effective movement of commerce into and through the State; and

WHEREAS, in the past those navigable waters and their valuable natural resources have been damaged by oil spills; and

WHEREAS, the federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990 codified at 33 U.S.C.A. 2701 et seq. (Oil Pollution Act) established a means of compensating those parties damaged by oil spills in the navigable waters of the United States by creating a complementary scheme of federal, state and international laws; and

WHEREAS, the prompt and effective cleanup of oil spill incidents and the restoration of damaged natural resources is of vital importance and requires close cooperation between the State and other state and federal agencies; and

WHEREAS, the Oil Pollution Act specifically requires that the Governor of each State designate a State official who may act on behalf of the public as its trustee for natural resources; and

WHEREAS, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection acts in a similar capacity under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and a variety of State laws and is thus the appropriate State official to serve as New Jersey's Natural Resource Trustee under the Oil Pollution Act;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, CHRISTINE TODD WHITMAN, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:

The Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is hereby designated ex-officio as the State's Natural Resource Trustee for the purposes outlined in Section 2706 (b)(3) of the Oil Pollution Act.

GIVEN, under my hand and seal
this day of in the Year of Our Lord,
One Thousand Nine Hundred and
Ninety-Four and of the Independence
of the United States, the Two Hundred
and Eighteenth.

/s/ Christine Todd Whitman
GOVERNOR

Attest:

/s/ Peter Verniero
Chief Counsel to the Governor