October 29th, 2021: Earlier this week, the Sierra Club and its partners scored a major win for climate and environmental justice when the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) denied air permit applications to the developers of two large gas-fired power plants—
(437 MW) and
(536 MW)—ensuring these plants will not be constructed. The power plants were proposed to be sited near environmental justice communities in Astoria, Queens and the Hudson Valley and would have emitted millions of tons of carbon dioxide and hundreds of tons of other air pollutants. Tracking arguments made by Sierra Club and its allies, DEC rejected the projects as inconsistent with New York’s landmark climate legislation and its 2040 emissions-free power sector mandate, setting a precedent that should put an end to the development of new fossil fuel-fired power generation in New York.
The permit denials were the culmination of years of legal and grassroots advocacy by the Sierra Club and a host of partner groups including the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, the PEAK Coalition, and Earthjustice. The grassroots organizing work resulted in over 11,000 public comments being submitted to DEC, hundreds of people turning out to public hearings, and dozens of local, state and federal elected officials voicing their opposition to the plants. Meanwhile, on the legal side, the Sierra Club and Earthjustice engaged at every step of the permitting processes, submitting technical comments and expert reports showing that the plants were not needed and their approval would be incompatible with New York’s climate mandates.
DEC’s denial decisions were a resounding affirmation of the collective advocacy. The agency minced no words in finding the plants inconsistent with New York’s climate legislation and lacking any compensatory justification or need.
: “The construction of a new fossil fuel-fired major electric generating facility, which would otherwise be expected to have a useful life beyond 2040, is inconsistent with the CLCPA’s requirement for emission-free electricity generation by 2040.” DEC also dismissed potential plans to convert the plants in future to so-called “renewable” natural gas or “green” hydrogen as undemonstrated and fraught with technical and environmental problems.
The Sierra Club will continue to partner with groups on the ground in these communities to address ongoing concerns about pollution from existing facilities, including existing gas plants. This advocacy will be greatly aided by the power precedent established by DEC’s denials of the Astoria and Danskammer permits.