Appl. of Spitzer v. Farrell, 1

Decision Date28 May 2002
Docket Number151,1
PartiesIn re Application of Eliot Spitzer, etc., Petitioner-Appellant, v Kevin Farrell, etc., et al., Respondents-Respondents. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, New York Public Interest Research Group, Greenpoint Waterfront Association for Parks & Planning, Inc., Amici Curiae. 151 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK APPELLATE DIVISION: FIRST JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT Decided on
CourtNew York Supreme Court Appellate Division

In re Application of Eliot Spitzer, etc., Petitioner-Appellant,
v
Kevin Farrell, etc., et al., Respondents-Respondents.

Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, New York Public Interest Research Group, Greenpoint Waterfront Association for Parks & Planning, Inc., Amici Curiae.

151

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
APPELLATE DIVISION: FIRST JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT

Decided on May 28, 2002

Lisa Feiner - for petitioner-appellant,

Kathleen Alberton - for respondents-respondents,

Katherine Kennedy - for amici curiae.

For a Judgment, etc.,

Williams, P.J., Andrias, Buckley, Rosenberger, JJ.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Stanley Parness, J.), entered October 13, 2000, which denied petitioner-appellant's Article 78 petition to annul a negative declaration issued by respondent New York City Department of Sanitation under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, unanimously reversed, on the law, without costs, the petition granted to the extent of annulling the negative declaration, and respondent directed to conduct a new environmental assessment.

In May 1996, the New York State Legislature adopted an amendment to the Environmental Conservation Law, requiring New York City to close the Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island by January 1, 2002. In order to comply with this mandate, New York City's Department of Sanitation (DOS) began to reduce the amount of waste deposited in Fresh Kills by implementing interim measures that would continue until the City adopted a final strategy for disposing of the thousands of tons of garbage it collected daily. In 1999, the DOS implemented an interim plan to deal with the approximately 2300 tons of solid waste it collects in Manhattan each day. Pursuant to this plan, the trash collected in Manhattan would be transported to solid-waste facilities in New Jersey. The plan calls for anywhere from 393 to 650 diesel-powered sanitation trucks to carry their collected trash each day to New Jersey and return to Manhattan via the George Washington Bridge and the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels.

Prior to implementing the plan to transport Manhattan's waste to New Jersey, the DOS was required by the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law (ECL), to assess whether the plan necessitated the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). SEQRA was enacted "to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and enhance human and community resources." (ECL § 8-0101.) Toward that end, the Legislature directed that "all agencies conduct their...

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