Most Americans are aware that a “Green New Deal” was proposed in Congress a few years back. Yet, far fewer Americans are aware of the fact that New York already passed Green New Deal legislation in 2019. One of the key elements of this broader plan to make the city...
Green Building
Two Decades Later, New York Proposes First Major Amendments to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA)
On January 17, 2017, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) released proposed amendments to SEQRA - the department's first major revisions to such regulations in more than two decades. The proposed amendments follow recent efforts by the DEC...
City Council Members Seek to Redefine “Reside” in Local Lead Paint Law
New York City's lead-based paint law (Local Law 1 [1982]) requires landlords to remove lead-based paint in any apartment unit in which a child under 6 years of age resides. The issue in Yaniveth R. v. LTD Realty Co. was whether a child "resides" in an apartment...
New State Legislation Requires Increased Climate Resilience for New York Infrastructure
As in other areas of environmental policy, New York State is a leader in grappling with global climate change. Since 2009, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has had a policy in place that requires it to consider energy use and greenhouse gas...
Proposed Revisions to SEQRA Regulations Currently Under Review
During the summer of 2012, the DEC proposed its first substantive amendments to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) regulations since 1996. The DEC has explained that the amendments are meant to streamline the review process "without sacrificing...
New York City Approves “Zone Green” Amendments to the City Zoning Resolution
On May 1, 2012, the New York City Council unanimously approved changes to the New York City Zoning Resolution that will encourage green construction for new buildings and green retrofits for existing buildings, among other environmentally-sound innovations. These...
