Under the February 2004 New Jersey Environmental Justice Executive Order, Maria Franco-Spera presently serves as the Environmental Justice Coordinator and as Policy Advisor for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).  In this role, she works on issues relating to urban revitalization, risk communication, brownfield redevelopment, environmental justice research, air pollution, drinking water protection, climate justice, education and outreach.  She collaborates and interacts with programs throughout the DEP and coordinates environmental justice issues with other New Jersey state departments and agencies, the USEPA, non-profit organizations and the public. Ms. Franco-Spera also administers the Environmental Justice Advisory Council to the DEP, an external advisory group, and the New Jersey Environmental Justice Task Force, an inter-agency governmental team. 

She has worked at DEP for the last nineteen years in various programs, including permitting, site remediation, and policy. She served as a Brownfield Specialist in the Office of Brownfield Reuse, where she successfully managed high profile brownfield redevelopment projects and developed policy and guidance to expedite the investigation and remediation of contaminated sites.