On June 1, Mayor Bloomberg announced the launch of four measures relating to the City Environmental Quality Review (“CEQR”) process, which requires an assessment of the potential environmental impacts of projects undertaken by the city or subject to its permitting authorities. The new reforms are intended to make CEQR more transparent and user-friendly while improving the quality of review. The four initiatives are:
- Revised Technical Manual: A revised CEQR Technical Manual, the City’s guidance for conducting CEQR analyses, has been prepared. It was released on May 17, 2010.
- New Environmental Assessment Statement (EAS) Short Form: CEQR requires the preparation of an EAS as the first step in an agency’s environmental review of a project. A new short EAS form, featuring a “check-list” format, is intended to simplify reporting for smaller projects.
- Revised EAS Full Form: In a revised full EAS form, the City has aimed to guide the applicant to focus on impacts requiring technical analysis and has clarified the form’s instructions by eliminating unnecessary text.
- CEQR Informational Services: The Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination has improved its website, adding among other things a centralized city-wide CEQR calendar and a one-stop CEQR forms page. The site also features a help-line for CEQR-related questions.
The new Technical Manual, which should be used for every environmental review commenced after May 17, 2010, is of critical interest to anyone undertaking a project subject to CEQR. Aside from changes to the organization of the Manual itself, the revisions expand CEQR review to cover some of the city’s most prominent environmental concerns – climate change and the water quality impacts of combined sewer overflow (CSO) events – as well as to promote the goals of Mayor Bloomberg’s citywide environmental sustainability plan, PlaNYC. These additions are coupled with efforts to simplify and focus review in a more streamlined process. These goals are reflected in two sets of changes to the CEQR process.
First, the revised Manual establishes or adjusts certain criteria for “screening analyses” for certain impact categories, by virtue of which projects that fall below certain thresholds may be determined to have no significant adverse impact on the environment without an in-depth technical analysis. These new criteria include numeric screening thresholds for direct residential and business displacement (as relates to socioeconomic impacts), a two-level screening process for transportation impacts, and step-by-step screening methods for public health and shadows impacts. The revisions also increase the threshold number of vehicle miles traveled needed to trigger a mobile air quality analysis. Overall, the new screening analyses are intended to encourage “targeted” reviews and expedite analysis of non-significant impacts.
The second set of revisions seeks to clarify, expand, and improve technical analysis of impacts requiring detailed review. Data on new legal standards have been updated, and factual background has been improved with additions such as open space maps and updated background traffic growth rates. For larger projects, the Manual now includes guidance for greenhouse gas emissions analysis and assessments of wind effects. Large city-sponsored projects will also need to be assessed for consistency with sustainability goals set forth in PlaNYC. The infrastructure analysis was expanded to include sewer system capacity between the project site and discharge point, taking into account possible CSO events. Other changes include updates that reflect minor changes in laws and codify current agency practice.
Dan Mach is a summer associate at Sive, Paget & Riesel, P.C.
