New Report Shows Major State Agencies Violate NY Climate Act
New York State – Today, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI) and the NY Renews Coalition released “Flouting the Law: Major State Agencies Are Ignoring New York’s Climate Mandates.” The report details how, on the fifth anniversary of the passage of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act), almost every state agency is ignoring the law's , including four of the state’s best-funded agencies, including the Departments of Health, Transportation, Education, and Development (Empire State Development). Catskill Mountainkeeper contributed to the report and its findings regarding the Department of Transportation's (NYSDOT) failure.
"In the face of the worsening climate crisis, New Yorkers deserve and demand that state agencies uphold our Climate Law and act in the best interest of our health, safety, and security. In the case of the Route 17 expansion project, should NYSDOT advance its current proposal--one that almost entirely impacts disadvantaged communities--the agency will be hampering New York's efforts to achieve climate justice, while further harming vulnerable towns and cities,” said Taylor Jaffe, Environmental Justice Coordinator of Catskill Mountainkeeper. “Catskill Mountainkeeper supports the thoughtful recommendations that emerge from this report and encourages NYSDOT and every state agency ‘to make the needed course corrections now.’" Click here to read the full press release.
