Overview
- New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation granted a Clean Water Act permit for the Northeast Supply Enhancement gas pipeline off the city’s coast, a major step long seen as a critical hurdle.
- Governor Kathy Hochul framed the move as necessary to keep heat and lights on during potential downstate shortages as soon as next summer.
- The decision reverses earlier state denials from 2020 after renewed pressure and follows public and private urging from President Donald Trump to advance the project.
- The 27-mile pipeline would carry fracked gas from Pennsylvania through New Jersey, including a 17-mile stretch under the ocean floor near Staten Island and the Rockaways, to bolster service in Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island.
- New Jersey must still issue a similar permit and lawsuits are possible; the state Public Service Commission found in September that the project would materially improve downstate gas reliability, while environmental groups condemned the approval and National Grid welcomed it, with residential bills projected to rise about $7.50 a month in affected areas.