CLIMATE CHANGE TASK FORCE
 

S.7842 (Marcellino)

Summary

This bill would create an interagency Climate Change Task Force that would develop recommendations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well as other measures that would mitigate the impact of climate change on New York. The measure would incorporate these recommendations into a formally approved climate change action plan.

Explanation

Global climate change threatens New York’s environment, natural resources and economy. Despite setting a goal in the 2002 State Energy Plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to five percent below 1990 levels by 2010, New York’s greenhouse gas emissions increased to approximately seven percent above 1990 levels by year-end 2005.

Scientists suggest that in order to avoid the worst effects of climate change, we need to cut worldwide greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent. While New York is actively involved in efforts to reduce climate change pollution, such as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), much more needs to be done.

This bill would establish an interagency task force to identify and evaluate potential climate change emissions reduction strategies. The task force would also review the existing research on potential climate change impacts, as well as make recommendations on potential adaptive measures appropriate for New York State. 

This deliberative process of evaluation along with the adoption of a climate change action plan will well serve New York as it moves forward to tackle arguably the toughest environmental problem facing our generation.

Environmental Advocates of New York supports this bill.