In a blow to New York’s environment, climate and the health of its residents, Governor Hochul’s Department of Environmental Conservation has approved the Iroquois Pipeline Company’s proposal to increase the capacity of polluting compressor stations in Athens and in Dover and expand the amount of fracked gas transported to New York City.

In response, Food & Water Watch Hudson Valley Organizer Emily Skydel issued the following statement:

“It is deplorable to approve new fracked gas infrastructure this late in the game for a livable climate. Governor Hochul’s decision is an insult to the vast majority of New Yorkers who called for — and won — a statewide ban on fracking more than a decade ago. While the world’s top scientists are yelling at the top of their lungs to speed up the transition off fossil fuels, Governor Hochul’s decision to expand the Iroquois Pipeline takes us in the completely opposite direction.  Given the Trump administration’s pro-fracking agenda, it is Governor Hochul’s job to step up and protect our state from the predatory, profit-driven fossil fuel industry.  This decision marks a complete failure in leadership. Who needs Republicans when we’ve got Democrats to do the fossil fuel industry’s bidding?”

100+ groups, thousands of New Yorkers, more than 60 elected officials, and – nine municipalities objected to the proposal, arguing that expanded fracked gas flow through the Hudson Valley to New York City threatened public health and safety while running afoul of the state’s Climate Act and New York City’s gas ban, which went into effect on January 1, 2024.

The proposal will increase the volume of gas that is pushed through a 37-year-old pipeline that runs 414 miles from the New York/Canadian border, south into New York City and Long Island. The expansion will require doubling four polluting fracked gas compressor stations, two in Greene and Dutchess Counties, and two in Connecticut. Compressor stations emit ozone and smog-forming particulate matter linked to asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, low birthweight in babies, and certain cancers.