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This past July, New York City had to suspend its use of speed cameras after lawmakers in Albany were unable to renew the program. Governor Andrew Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio, and the New York City Council worked together and developed a solution to state lawmakers’ lack of support.

New York State Attorney General Barbara Underwood is taking steps to preserve the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, which would have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 30% nationwide.

A recent study by Data Driven Yale shows that sub-national efforts have the potential to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and represent a significant step forward in meeting the global temperature goals of the Paris Agreement.  However, they are still not enough to prevent the dangerous warming that will trigger increased heat waves, mightier storms, rising seas and displacement of people.  

A coalition of over 40 environmental, governmental, housing, labor, and real estate groups recently unveiled the Blueprint For Efficiency plan to mandate dramatic energy use cuts in New York City’s large buildings. In conjunction with the plans release, City Council Member Costa Constantinides announced plans to introduce legislation this fall that would reflect much of the plan’s recommendations. The plan and accompanying legislation come after two years of discussions and negotiations between the city administration, City Council, and stakeholder groups on how to address the biggest contributor to the city’s greenhouse gas emissions - buildings.

You may already know about the recreational and environmental benefits of open green space. But do you know about the public safety benefits of greenspaces? A new study by the New York Restoration Project found a correlation between the creation of new green spaces and improvements in crime rates.

It is crucial for policymakers to pass legislation to divert food waste from landfills, as only 3% of waste produced in the state does not end up at either a landfill or waste-to-energy facility. The Food Recovery and Recycling Act (that, unfortunately, did not pass) would have discouraged the production, distribution, and preparation of excess food; recovered excess food to be redistributed to those in need; and provided funding for new recycling programs specifically concerning food scraps.

If you have been keeping up with the news lately, you are bound to have heard that this year is projected to be one of the hottest on record … again. New York suffers from increased temperatures compared to its suburbs and exurbs due to a phenomenon called the urban heat island effect.