Gov. Cuomo and state environmental officials made a special Earth Day announcement Friday, denying a crucial permit required for the controversial Constitution Pipeline.
The New York State Department of Conservation rejected a water quality certificate needed for the 124-mile natural gas pipeline project.
DEC officials said in a statement that the project failed to meet standards that protect hundreds of streams, wetlands and other water resources in its path from Pennsylvania’s shale gas fields to eastern New York.
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Environmental activists celebrated the Earth Day victory, applauding the move as the most Earth-friendly move made by Cuomo since the decision to ban fracking in New York last year.
“Countless communities, over 1,000 acres of forests and farms, and nearly 300 vulnerable waterways are no longer under threat,” Catskill Mountainkeeper said in a statement.
The energy companies behind Constitution Pipeline Company, a partnership formed by Cabot Oil & Gas, Williams Partners and Piedmont Natural Gas Company, were not pleased with the decision.
“We remain absolutely committed to building this important energy infrastructure project,” a statement posted on the project’s website said. “We are in the process of analyzing the stated rationale for the denial.”
The group said they will assess their options, including a possible appeal to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The DEC said the project’s construction would affect 251 streams and 500 acres of valuable forest as well as extensive wetlands.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the project in 2014 contingent on the state permit, which is required by the federal Clean Water Act.
The project has already received a green light in Pennsylvania and trees have already been cleared there in preparation for construction.
The decision comes two days after Kinder Morgan Inc. announced it was mothballing its planned Northeast Energy Direct pipeline, which would have followed some of the same route as Constitution.
After Cuomo banned hydraulic fracturing for shale gas in 2014, environmentalists turned their efforts to defeating pipelines and other energy infrastructure projects.
“Cuomo’s leadership could inspire a domino effect of related pipeline rejections as other states begin to put the protection of water and our climate before flawed energy projects that do not serve the public interest,” Roger Downs of the Sierra Club’s Atlantic Chapter told the Associated Press.
But some local officials, labor groups and business interests argue the pipeline would be an economic boon to the state.
“We are incredibly disappointed that the administration allowed fear-mongering to once again lead the way,” said Heather Briccetti, president of The Business Council of New York State.
The DEC said that in addition to its review of the pipeline’s application, the agency also considered more than 15,000 public comments.
With News Wire Services
