A lawsuit filed in New York Supreme Court challenged the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (NYSDEC’s) issuance of air and water permits for components of a semiconductor manufacturing project in Onondaga County. An <a href="https://www.climatecasechart.com/collections/neighbors-for-a-better-micron-v-onondaga-county-industrial-development-agency_6a97">earlier lawsuit</a> challenging the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency’s State Environmental Quality Review Act determinations is also pending in New York Supreme Court. The petitioners challenging the permits asserted that NYSDEC’s issuance of a Clean Air Act Title V permit for the project failed to satisfy the requirements of Section 7(2) of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) because NYSDEC’s justifications for the permit did not identify “real, quantifiable, permanent, verifiable, and enforceable” mitigation measures and instead “rely only on funding for unidentified future projects, without established selection criteria, quantified emissions reductions, or any assurance that the funded projects will mitigate the Project’s [greenhouse gas] emissions.” DEC also asserted that issuance of the Title V permit was arbitrary and capricious for failing to adequately evaluate and control emissions, including by failing to resolve issues regarding potential sulfur hexafluoride emissions. The petitioners also asserted that NYSDEC’s CLCPA Section 7(2) determination for the water discharge permit failed to identify enforceable mitigation and instead required Onondaga County to prepare a future CLCPA mitigation plan. The petition also asserted failures to address air emissions and water discharges of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Challenge to permits for semiconductor manufacturing project in Onondaga County, New York.

Neighbors for a Better Micron v. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

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Lawsuit Challenged Semiconductor Manufacturing Project Permits’ Compliance with New York Climate Law

Filed

United States of America

New York

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Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

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Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

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Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

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The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

A loan is a policy instrument where funds are provided to a borrower with the expectation of repaying the principal plus interest.

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Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

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The release of heat-trapping gases, primarily from human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and industry.

A long-lived, colourless gas, chiefly emitted from fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and cement production.

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Lawsuit Challenged Semiconductor Manufacturing Project Permits’ Compliance with New York Climate Law

Target

Policy instrument

Risk

Just transition

Renewable energy

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance