April has been a busy and productive Earth Month here at NYC-EJA. We've geared up for the NYS Climate Action Council (CAC) draft scoping plan public hearings, celebrated some major legislative wins, and worked hard to advance climate justice for all New Yorkers.
Read more about our work below.
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NYS Draft Scoping Plan: Public Hearings 2022
Brooklyn Hearing Tomorrow!
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The public comment process to gather input on the Draft Scoping Plan—the blueprint for NY’s climate future—continues through May as New York's Climate Action Council hold more public hearings across the state. These public comments will affect the Final Scoping Plan, which will ultimately guide the implementation of the nation-leading climate goals set forth under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).
The work to implement the CLCPA has begun, and we’ll need your help to ensure that the fossil fuel industry doesn’t derail its most powerful community, health, and labor protections!
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We must push back against false energy solutions and misguided narratives that claim a transition to a reliable, cost-effective, and socially just renewable-energy economy is impossible. Last but not least, we’d love to get as many testimonies as possible at these hearings, which is why we’ve put together a Testimony 101 document. We hope you find this guide useful to submit testimony.
Let’s make this critical moment ours!
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Major Legislative and Budget Wins |
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This past month NYC-EJA, our members, and allies had a number of legislative wins as the Assembly and Senate passed legislation that will help us make progress toward the goals of the CLCPA. NYC-EJA has supported the following efforts in partnership with other key allies:
The Cumulative Impacts bill (S.8830/A.2103D) finally passed both houses and is a tremendous win to help course correct the legacy of inequitable siting of industrial and commercial facilities in disadvantaged communities. Read our memo of support here.
Electric Vehicle State Procurement bill (S.2838C/A.2412B) will require state fleet procurement requiring at least 25% of fleets to be made up of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) by 2025 and 50% by 2030. This has been a top priority of ElectrifyNY.
Cryptocurrency Mining Moratorium (A.7389C) - The Assembly passed A.7389-C, a moratorium on cryptocurrency mining operations that use proof-of-work authentication methods to validate blockchain transactions. This moratorium will ensure that no fossil-fuel-burning facilities in New York will be used to mine cryptocurrency and undermine the CLCPA for the next two years. Such an energy-intensive industry must not proceed unregulated when it has demonstrated impacts on energy affordability, air quality, and public health. The bill now needs support to pass in the Senate (which passed a similar bill last session). Read our memo of support and a joint press release with Earthjustice.
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) Raids - Announced in this year's budget, NYS stopped the practice of raiding revenue from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a program designed to charge carbon pollution from power plants. Previously, $269 million of RGGI funds has been transferred away from investments in energy efficiency, renewables, and carbon pollution reduction over the course of New York's participation with RGGI. Read NYC-EJA and EANY's joint statement here.
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New Report on Transitioning NYPA's NYC Peaker Plants to Battery Storage by 2030 |
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On April 21st, the PEAK Coalition released a study in collaboration with the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to analyze pathways to transition NYPA’s peaker plants with battery storage alternatives. The joint study results from a landmark agreement between NYPA and PEAK to explore available options to transition NYPA’s six peaker power plants in New York City to cleaner energy technologies. Given site characteristics and battery density assumptions, the study finds that each of NYPA's peakers could individually be replaced with battery storage by 2030. With increased investment in local renewable and storage development, peakers could be shut down even sooner and provide local economic, health, and resilience benefits. The study was accompanied by a Request for Proposals from NYPA to transition in-city peaker plant sites and related electric infrastructure to bulk-scale battery storage projects. PEAK is committed to continuing this collaboration with NYPA towards an emissions-free future and advocating for replacing all public and private peaker plants in New York City with renewable energy and battery storage solutions. Find PEAK's statement here.
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Come on — Ride on the Electric School Bus! |
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In April, ElectrifyNY scored a major victory with the inclusion of a 2035 zero-emissions school bus fleet mandate in the NY state budget. The mandate also includes a provision that all new school bus purchases be zero emissions by 2027 and enables the Office of General Services and NYSERDA to provide financial and technical support to districts serving disadvantaged communities struggling with multiple crises. The coalition also scored a win through the inclusion of public transportation systems in the “zero-emission bus roadmap” that will guide the state in electrifying electric school buses and public transit buses throughout the state. Following this news, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced it will deploy 60 electric buses to bus routes that serve communities with high asthma rates. The coalition is disappointed that the budget did not include the $300 million dedicated funding ask to electrify the state’s nearly 50,000 school buses but the coalition is in support of the designation of $500 million in the Environmental Bond Act for electric school bus procurement and supporting infrastructure. Read the coalition’s full statement here!
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New York City Council Oversight Hearing on Local Law 97 |
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On April 13th, the NYC Council's Committee on Environmental Protection jointly with the Committee on Housing and Buildings held an oversight hearing on Local Law 97, the landmark law that passed in 2019 as part of the Climate Mobilization Act. Local Law 97 requires large buildings, which contribute to nearly 70% of the city's total emissions, to meet ambitious emissions reduction targets through retrofits, which will create thousands of green jobs for NYC residents. NYC-EJA's Resiliency Planner Shravanthi Kanekal testified in support of the complete and equitable implementation of the law, which would require the City to adequately staff appropriate agencies, engage and educate building owners on the law and available financial resources, and hold them accountable to pay penalties if they do not comply with emissions targets in the law. We welcomed the announcement from the City that a carbon emissions cap and trade mechanism for buildings seeking an alternative compliance method would not be adopted, as we consider this a false solution to reduce emissions. Read our full testimony here. |
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NYC-EJA's Executive Director Eddie Bautista was also honored to be included on 'The 2022 Energy and Environment Power 100' statewide list by City & State alongside a number of alli es. Below is the blurb describing Eddie's work.
"Few activists have brought more attention to climate change’s effects on New York’s underserved communities than Eddie Bautista. The Brooklyn native has been tackling environmental racism for more than 10 years and is leading efforts to help the state identify communities that bear the harshest environmental burdens and need more investment. Bautista also worked with NY Renews to bring 400 people to Albany to press legislators to add $15 billion in climate funding in the state budget and vowed to hold New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ climate team accountable for its policies."
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Sincerely,
Eddie Bautista
Executive Director
New York City Environmental Justice Alliance
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