Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)

• In SFY 2021-22, DEC All Funds spending totaled $1.3 billion, an increase of $350.8 million (35.4 percent) from SFY 2020-21 as agency operations recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. The largest increase was in local assistance spending with a year-over-year increase of 122.6 percent.
• As of March 31, 2022, employment at DEC was 2,815 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) positions, a reduction of 38 FTEs below levels as of March 31 in the previous year and 6.3 percent below levels from March 31, 2012.

Environmental Protection Fund (EPF)

Created in 1993, the EPF:

• Provides an ongoing source of primarily pay-as-you-go funding to address the State’s environmental needs. Appropriations to the EPF have fluctuated over time and were $300 million in SFY 2021-22. EPF appropriations reached a high-water mark of $400 million in the Enacted Budget for SFY 2022-23.
• Supports a broad array of environmental programs, such as State and municipal open space conservation; municipal and agricultural nonpoint source water pollution control; State and local parks projects; municipal water pollution control and aquatic habitat conservation; support for the State’s zoos, botanical gardens and aquaria; waterfront revitalization; farmland conservation; and municipal climate change mitigation and resilience programs.
• Has been primarily funded with a portion of the State’s real estate transfer tax. However, from SFY 2014-15 through SFY 2021-22, General Fund Transfers were also a recurring funding source and accounted for 19 percent of all EPF revenues over this period.

Restore Mother Nature Bond Act

• The Enacted Budget for SFY 2021-22 authorized a bond act to be considered by voters in November of 2022 entitled the “Environmental Bond Act of 2022: Restore Mother Nature.” This bond act was modified in the Enacted Budget for SFY 2022-23 to increase the amount of bonding to be considered by the voters to $4.2 billion, increase funding for existing programs, establish domestic content and labor standards for funded projects and add a new program to support the purchase of electric school buses. In addition, the bond act was renamed the “Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act.” If approved by the voters, this would be the largest General Obligation bond act in State history.

Air

• For 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s State Average Annual Emissions Trend report showed estimated total emissions in New York from certain criteria pollutants covered by the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, excluding lead, of 1.9 million tons, a decrease of 1.1 percent from the previous year’s estimated emissions and a decrease of 39.8 percent from 2011. These emissions include nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, particulate pollution, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and ammonia. Nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds are precursors of ground level ozone, or smog. Sulfur dioxide is a precursor of particulate formation in the atmosphere and of acid rain. Total emissions of each pollutant and the most prominent source for each are listed below:
  • Carbon monoxide – 1.2 million tons. Together, highway and off-highway vehicles accounted for 84.3 percent of carbon monoxide emissions. Volatile organic compounds — 273,316 tons. Industrial and commercial solvent use accounted for 49.2 percent of that total.
  • Nitrogen oxides – 196,228 tons. Highway and off-highway vehicles accounted for 60.9 percent of these emissions.
  • Particulates – 202,839 tons. Mining and quarrying, construction, agriculture and road dust combined produced 72.6 percent of these emissions.
  • Ammonia – 41,961 tons. Agricultural livestock and fertilizer application combined accounted for 80.9 percent of this total.
  • Sulfur dioxide – 14,576 tons. Fuel combustion produced 51.6 percent of the total.

Water

• Since SFY 2015-16, Enacted Budgets have included $4.9 billion for clean water infrastructure projects, including those projects authorized by the New York State Water Infrastructure Improvement and Clean Water Infrastructure Improvement Acts. Eligible projects include nonagricultural nonpoint source control; municipal wastewater treatment; remediation of contaminated sites that contribute to water contamination; source water protection; and upgrades to septic systems and cesspools. As of March 31, 2022, $913.4 million (18.6 percent) had been spent from these appropriations.
• In 2021, there were reported incidences of harmful algal blooms (HAB) on 192 bodies of water in New York State, an increase of eight from the prior year. HABs lead to reduced oxygen in the water and produce toxins that can make it unsuitable for use as a surface drinking water supply. Of the affected water bodies:
  • 55.2 percent experienced more than one HAB;
  • 5.2 percent experienced between 10 and 20; and
  • 6.3 percent experienced 20 or more.

  Cayuga Lake, in the Finger Lakes region, had the largest number of observed HAB events, with 117.

Solid Waste

• According to the DEC in 2018:
  • A total of 39.1 million tons of waste were generated in New York State including:
    • 18.3 million tons of municipal solid waste;
    • 15.4 million tons of construction and demolition debris;
    • 2.6 million tons of industrial wastes; and
    • 2.8 million tons of biosolids.
  • Of these wastes:
    • 14.3 million tons were landfilled;
    • 14.0 million tons were recycled;
    • 7.5 million tons were exported for disposal; and
    • 3.3 million tons were incinerated.

Energy

• In furtherance of the goals of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, legislation was enacted in 2022 to upgrade efficiency standards for buildings, appliances and other equipment. In addition, legislation was enacted to authorize utilities to construct and operate geothermal district heating infrastructure, as well as legislation lowering the capacity threshold at which renewable energy projects are required to pay prevailing wages from five megawatts to one megawatt.
• According to the New York Independent System Operator, in 2021, 126,766 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity were generated in New York State. Of this electricity: 
  • 35,321 GWh (27.9 percent) was produced from renewable fuels;
  • 31,113 GWh (24.5 percent) was produced from nuclear fuels; and
  • 60,332 GWh (47.6 percent) was produced from fossil fuels.
• Renewable generation includes hydroelectric (28,675 GWh), wind (4,111 GWh), 2,485 GWh from methane, refuse and wood, and solar (50 GWh). Fossil generation includes gas and oil (49,079 GWh), gas (10,387 GWh), and oil (154 GWh).

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration:

• In 2019, New York State emitted 169 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, ranking ninth in the nation for these emissions.
• In 2020, New York State had the most energy efficient economy among U.S. states, consuming 2.4 thousand BTUs for every dollar of gross domestic product.
• In 2020, with energy consumption of 166 BTU per person, New York State had the third lowest per capita energy consumption of any state.
• In 2020, New York State’s natural gas price of $7.14 per million BTU was ninth in the nation.
• In 2020, at $43.57 per million BTU, New York State’s electric retail sales price was ninth in the nation.

Agriculture

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2021:

• There were 33,400 farms in New York State encompassing 6.9 million acres, with an average farm area of 207 acres.
• At $3,150 per acre, New York had the second lowest average value for farmland among Northeastern states—
  only Maine’s value was lower.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2020:

• The overall economic impact from New York farms as measured by net farm income was $1.9 billion, a decrease of 2.5 percent from 2019.
• Receipts from the sale of all agricultural commodities in New York State were approximately $5.4 billion.
• With total receipts of $328.1 million, New York was the second largest apple producer in the nation.
• New York was the fifth largest milk producer in the nation, with total sales of $2.7 billion.