Climate Change
Clean Power Plan Repeal and Replacement Proposed By EPA
By: Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz On August 18, 2018, the Trump administration proposed sweeping changes to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) regulations of power plant greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions, which would replace the Clean Power Plan regulations promulgated by the Obama administration in 2015. According to EPA’s projections, the proposed changes would result in increased emissions of…
DEC Releases Flood Risk Management Guidance Affecting the Flood Hazard Area Applied to State Permit Applications
On June 20, 2018, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) released two draft flood risk management guidance documents intended to advise New York state agencies on how to incorporate the consideration of future climate risks, including risks of sea-level rise, storm surge, and flooding, into existing regulatory processes. The non-binding guidance is…
Federal Agencies Begin Rulemaking to Weaken Fuel Economy Standards
By: Nathaniel Eisen As one of numerous attempts by the Trump Administration to roll back Obama-era rules, in the coming weeks, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are expected to announce a proposed rule that would weaken the agencies’ 2012 national standards for vehicular greenhouse gas emissions and fuel…
New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan is Released
Today, New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo unveiled the New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan: Charting a Course to 2,400 Megawatts of Offshore Wind Energy. On behalf of the State, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (“NYSERDA”) oversaw the preparation of the Master Plan and its 20 supporting studies. The…
New York State and City Pension Funds Will Divest from Fossil Fuel Companies
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio have both recently made significant climate change-related announcements: the State’s and City’s pension funds will divest billions of dollars from fossil fuel companies. These actions support state and local goals of reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions 40% by 2030 and meeting the Paris Agreement…
DEC Challenges FERC’s Decision to Undercut Its Water Quality Certification Denial for Millennium Pipeline Project
In an October 13, 2017 letter, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) challenged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (“FERC”) decision that, by failing to act, DEC had waived its authority to issue a Clean Water Act water quality certification for Millennium Pipeline Company LLC’s (“Millennium”) proposed Valley Lateral Project, a 7.8-mile natural…