Honorable Steve Englebright- Chair, Environmental Conservation Committee- New York Assembly Albany, NY [email protected]

Dear Assemblyman Englebright,

We are concerned that the operation of new fossil-fuel driven power plants in Orange and Dutchess County, as well as enhancements to the grid which would allow an increase in the flow of natural gas to Long Island, needlessly endanger our State’s residents. Prudent public policy mandates a moratorium on the operation of these plants, as well as on any enhancements of fossil fuel infrastructure, until both the passing of the current pandemic and sufficient study of the likely impact of their respective emission streams on public health and safety.

Since 2018, despite developing state policies which seek to significantly limit the expansion of fossil fuel dependency and promote alternative energy sources, both CPV [Wawayanda] and Cricket Valley [Dover] have commenced operation. Indian Point continues to provide significant energy for the downstate grid and other sources of electric generation abound. In recent weeks, energy use has plummeted downstate by between 9-18% depending on time of day. Such a diminution in demand is expected to continue at least through the summer and calls into question the rationale for the immediate opening of Cricket Valley and any other bolstering of fossil fuel infrastructure.

New York State’s evolving energy policy recognizes our profound, collective need to reduce reliance on fossil fuel which has caused substantial global warming of between 1.8 - 2.4 degrees Fahrenheit during the last 140 years. Releases of carbon dioxide, methane, and various forms of nitrogen oxides during the extraction, transmission and production process need to be substantially curtailed through collective action.

Recently, Governor Andrew Cuomo recognized the correlation between the higher incidence of COVID-19-related deaths and higher levels of air pollution. In recent months, Harvard University’s School of Public Health published a research study based upon seventeen years of data collection. Its study concluded that persons living in counties with fossil-fuel-generating plants like the two identified above bear a 15% greater chance of dying from respiratory disease like the COVID-19 virus than those otherwise situated. This finding confirms prior research linking particulate discharges from such plants with increased instances of respiratory-related death, illness, and distress.

In his daily briefings, Governor Cuomo has admirably expressed a concern we share for every human life. A moratorium on the operation of CPV and CVE, and any other enhancements to the fossil fuel infrastructure, would not endanger the grid’s capacity to meet current electricity demand. It will allow scientists to carefully review the results of appropriate air monitoring gathered to date as against the available research data and make realistic projections of the health impacts arising from operation of these power plants. It would also allow re-calibration of the need for these facilities considering our current and projected increase in supply of alternative energy sources and current demand projections, accurately adjusted to account for the pandemic.

Beyond the immediate concerns for public health, made more acute by the COVID-19 virus, other state-embraced values support a moratorium. During this legislative session, the State Legislature codified Governor Cuomo’s December 2014 decision to bar high volume hydro-fracking in our State. The referenced plants solely utilize fracked natural gas to support their operations. Having legislatively recognized the significant health and safety dangers posed by production of fracked natural gas, our State should re-visit relying upon this product in our daily lives. And, of course, to curb climate change, we must continue to focus on identifying feasible ways to meet now adopted state goals for diminishing overall reliance on fossil fuels. This moratorium will also emphasize the urgency of implementing the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth & Community Benefit Act passed as part of New York State’s Fiscal Year ’21 budget and bolster New York’s economy with tens of thousands of jobs necessary to implement its objectives. Addressing climate change is a progressive step which will augment our state and national GNP.

The pandemic affords silver linings: we can and must reassess how we meet basic needs. Our collective response to this crisis shows that government can be a force for profound good and organize collective action to achieve critical shared goals. The challenges posed by climate change may seem more abstract, but they are not. Daily, around the world, irrefutably, climate change is causing profound dislocation, famine, and death. Nothing is as basic as how we heat our homes and power our hospitals and factories. A realignment in energy supply intended to protect against known public health risks should now be a paramount and shared value. Our proposed moratorium represents clear action to implement our shared commitment to human health and welfare.