Posts by sprlaw
Trump Executive Order Directs EPA and the Corps to Reconsider the 2015 “Clean Water Rule”
On February 28, 2017, the Trump administration issued an Executive Order (the “Order”) directing the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”) to begin the process of “revising or revoking” the Obama administration’s 2015 “Clean Water Rule” (the “Rule”) which sought to define the extent of federal jurisdiction over “waters…
Read MoreAppellate Court Denies Motion to Enjoin Brooklyn Heights Library Redevelopment
By: Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz On March 7, 2017, the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division, Second Department, denied a motion to enjoin the redevelopment of the Brooklyn Public Library’s (“BPL”) Brooklyn Heights branch, which will provide a modernized library within a new 36-story, mixed-used building featuring 134 market-rate apartments, two retail spaces, and a science,…
Read MoreDEC Adopts Regulation Establishing Sea-Level Rise Projections for New York
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) recently announced the final adoption of a regulation establishing science-based sea-level rise projections for New York’s tidal coast. The regulation, which implements the Community Risk and Resiliency Act (“CRRA”) of 2014, was first proposed in late 2015 and was revised in late 2016. The final regulation…
Read MoreLIPA Approves Power Purchase Agreement for Nation’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm
By: Ed Roggenkamp On January 25, 2017, the Long Island Power Authority (“LIPA”) voted to approve a power purchase agreement (“PPA”) with Deepwater Wind for the South Fork wind farm, a proposed 90 megawatt (“MW”) offshore wind farm located approximately 30 miles southeast of Montauk. If constructed, the South Fork wind farm would be the…
Read MoreNYSDEC Proposes First Major Amendments to State Environmental Quality Review Act Regulations in Over Twenty Years
By: Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz On January 23, 2017, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“NYSDEC”) proposed the most significant changes to its regulations implementing the State Environmental Quality Review Act (“SEQRA”) in more than twenty years. The proposal aims to streamline the environmental impact review process in New York, particularly for projects that advance…
Read MoreAlbany Supreme Court Dismisses Challenge to State Permit for Pier 55 in Hudson River Park
In a decision dated January 20, 2017, Hon. Lisa M. Fisher of the New York Supreme Court, Albany County, dismissed in its entirety litigation challenging the legality of the permit that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) issued for the Pier 55 project in Hudson River Park. The project, currently in construction,…
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