""Don't mess up my beach, girl," New Yorker and comedian Ilana Glazer pleaded to Gov. Kathy Hochul in late July in an Instagram reel with over 46,000 likes. Glazer wants the governor to reject the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) project, which would build a natural gas pipeline that would start in Pennsylvania and end in New York City's beachfront community, the Rockaways, with a 17-mile stretch below the ocean floor."
"But the project, which critics say is at odds with New York's legal commitment to shift to cleaner sources of energy, would also surface contaminants like mercury and copper that accumulated at the bottom of the ocean, thanks to decades of industrial activity. This would "disturb sensitive habitats" and "result in significant water quality impacts," according to the state's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which has already rejected the water quality permits needed to bring the pipeline to life three times."
The NESE pipeline would run from Pennsylvania to New York City's Rockaways with a 17-mile subsea segment to supply gas to National Grid customers for peak demand. The state's Department of Environmental Conservation has rejected the necessary water quality permits three times, citing disturbance of sensitive habitats and significant water quality impacts. Critics warn that construction would resuspend legacy contaminants like mercury and copper from the seafloor and contradict New York's legal commitments to cleaner energy. More than 13,000 public comments and public figures urged rejection, while the developer is recycling prior applications amid reported political pressure to fast-track approvals.
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