After a lawsuit in California toppled the city of Berkeley's efforts to replace gas stoves with clean electric energy, fossil fuel industry groups are testing the same legal strategy in New York.
Environmental groups see the pipeline project as a step backward in honoring the state's landmark 2019 climate law, which seeks to move away from fossil fuels and guarantee that 70 percent of New York's electricity comes from renewable energy sources by 2030.
Awaiting remediation for the creek, local attention has turned to the more immediate threat of rain-driven flooding. Coney Island flooded badly from the remnants of Hurricane Ida at the beginning of September 2021. The two years since were a missed opportunity for resiliency improvements, local activists say.
"Mayor Adams plans to force families experiencing their very first winter in the United States to uproot their lives every 60 days, without an idea of where they’ll end up once they hit their shelter limit."
Polluted from both its industrial past and the city's present-day sewer system, community leaders have pushed for years to get Coney Island Creek included on either New York State or the federal government's Superfund lists. But it hasn't been easy.