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New York to Make Major Greenhouse Gas Emitters Pay for Past Pollution
This is a good start, I bet California wishes they had done something like this...By Akielly Hu, 8 January 2025
Original source: https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/policy-regulation/new-york-to-make-major-greenhouse-gas-emitters-pay-for-past-pollution
The new law, signed by the governor in late December, will raise $3B each year from large fossil-fuel companies for efforts to adapt to climate change.
-snip-
On December 26, lawmakers passed the Climate Change Superfund Act, modeled after federal and state Superfund laws that retroactively force polluters to fund the cleanup of their toxic waste. The New York legislation will require fossil-fuel companies responsible for the bulk of historic greenhouse gas emissions to pay a combined $3 billion each year for 25 years for infrastructure repairs and upgrades needed to recover from and adapt to climate change impacts like natural disasters, sea-level rise, and extreme heat.
New York is the second state to adopt a climate Superfund law following Vermont’s passage of a similar law last year. While it will take several years for state agencies to hammer out the details of exactly which companies will pay and how much, advocates say that the law marks an important step toward greater climate accountability in the Empire State.
Blair Horner, senior policy advisor at the New York Public Interest Research Group, an advocacy organization closely involved with the law’s passage, described the law as a form of taxpayer relief for New Yorkers who — up until now — have paid for 100 percent of the costs of climate change. “This spreads the responsibility to what is likely to be the largest oil and gas companies,” Horner said.
-snip-
Original source: https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/policy-regulation/new-york-to-make-major-greenhouse-gas-emitters-pay-for-past-pollution
The new law, signed by the governor in late December, will raise $3B each year from large fossil-fuel companies for efforts to adapt to climate change.
-snip-
On December 26, lawmakers passed the Climate Change Superfund Act, modeled after federal and state Superfund laws that retroactively force polluters to fund the cleanup of their toxic waste. The New York legislation will require fossil-fuel companies responsible for the bulk of historic greenhouse gas emissions to pay a combined $3 billion each year for 25 years for infrastructure repairs and upgrades needed to recover from and adapt to climate change impacts like natural disasters, sea-level rise, and extreme heat.
New York is the second state to adopt a climate Superfund law following Vermont’s passage of a similar law last year. While it will take several years for state agencies to hammer out the details of exactly which companies will pay and how much, advocates say that the law marks an important step toward greater climate accountability in the Empire State.
Blair Horner, senior policy advisor at the New York Public Interest Research Group, an advocacy organization closely involved with the law’s passage, described the law as a form of taxpayer relief for New Yorkers who — up until now — have paid for 100 percent of the costs of climate change. “This spreads the responsibility to what is likely to be the largest oil and gas companies,” Horner said.
-snip-
Full Article: https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/policy-regulation/new-york-to-make-major-greenhouse-gas-emitters-pay-for-past-pollution
Link to Vermont's similar law: https://legislature.vermont.gov/bill/status/2024/S.259
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