Environmentalists call out proposed environmental review reform

Environmentalists are sounding the alarm on a portion of the proposed state budget, which, if passed, would roll back restrictions on the state’s environmental review procedures.

A section of budgets proposed by Gov. Kathy Hochul and the State Senate would reform the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), which requires all municipalities to “equally examine the environmental impacts along with the social and economic considerations” of a proposed project, like a housing or commercial development.

The reform calls for adding exempted actions to state environmental review to encourage more development and is part of Gov. Hochul’s “Let Them Build” initiative. These exemptions would apply to developments that are “found to have no significant environmental impact,” according to a statement from the governor’s office.

“For too long, unnecessary red tape has stood in the way of new housing and critical infrastructure. If local leaders want to deliver new investments for their communities, I say, ‘Let Them Build,’” Gov. Hochul said in a statement earlier this year.

In justifying the changes, Hochul cited an analysis by Empire State Development that manufacturing, housing, and energy projects take up to 56 percent longer in New York State to complete from concept to groundbreaking compared to other states due to heavy red tape.

Under the reform, housing developments would be exempt from SEQRA review if they meet four criteria: if the development is connected to existing public water and sewage systems; is located at a previously “disturbed site;” contains less than 50,000 square feet of non-residential uses or 20 percent non-residential uses by floor area in mixed-use projects; and has fewer than 100 dwelling units.

“Disturbed sites” include areas that have been developed for up to two years prior, are substantially altered by buildings or impervious surfaces, are not located in FEMA 100-year floodplains, or have not been used for agricultural purposes within the last three to five years.

The rollbacks also apply to low-impact parks and wastewater infrastructure projects that involve the replacement or rehabilitation of existing systems, or new projects in areas with “inadequate” sewage treatment.

Despite support from dozens of politicians, including New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani, as well as business and housing advocacy groups, local environmental organizations are pushing back against the proposed reform, citing an overly broad change whose impacts have not been fully vetted by the state.

Robyn Silvestri, executive director of Save the Great South Bay, said she’s concerned that the proposed SEQRA exemptions may lead to more development near local wetlands, further damaging local waterways, including the Great South Bay.

“The environment needs to be a primary concern when developing plans; it can’t be an afterthought,” Silvestri said. “[SEQRA] really requires decision-makers to fully consider the environmental impacts that a project is going to have before it moves forward. Once the project is done, it’s too late.”

While Silvestri agrees that Long Island needs more housing, she said such projects need to be developed sustainably.
Save the Great South Bay has joined forces with other environmental organizations, like Save the Sound on the North Shore, to advocate against the proposed reforms in Albany.

“The exemptions to SEQRA that the governor is proposing are simply overly broad,” said David Ansel, vice president of water protection at Save the Sound. “I’ve been a lawyer for over 30 years, and I think the drafting is also very poor and ambiguous, and there’s a lacking of defined terms and guard rails around the exemptions that have been proposed.”

Ansel said the language in the clauses defining “previously disturbed sites” isn’t fully defined and may embolden developers to construct on sites where environmental review is debatable, potentially leading to litigation and extending the development process.

While Gov. Hochul proposed the changes to make housing more affordable by increasing inventory, Ansel argues that the newly worded SEQRA clauses lack distinctions or priorities for affordable housing and that such rollbacks can be used for luxury or non-residential uses.

Environmentalists like Ansel also say such a wide-sweeping reform shouldn’t be passed behind closed doors through the budget process.

“If the governor wants to have a serious conversation about how to improve SEQRA, if people think there are challenges with it, then that needs to be done in an open forum, in an open process, through hearings and a piece of legislation, and not in the budget process,” Ansel said.

The SEQRA reforms are included in the governor’s and State Senate’s budget proposals, but not in the State Assembly’s. The state budget’s passage deadline of April 1 has been extended multiple times this month.

Ansel has been lobbying Albany politicians to oppose the SEQRA changes, but said the governor’s stance appears unchanged.

When asked questions about the SEQRA reforms, Gov. Hochul’s office restated its support for the changes based on the governor’s initial press statement in January.

“I really believe that these exemptions could result in irresponsible interpretations, and that we’re very concerned that this is going to potentially result in water pollution, flooding, erosion, and ultimately be harmful for people and property in the State of New York,” Ansel said.