State Senate Passes Environmental Protections in Honor of Earth Day

State Senators introduce a bigger, better bottle bill.

The New York State Senate marked Earth Day 2025 with a legislative package that includes measures to set community air quality standards for certain toxic air contaminants, ban oil and gas production on protected state lands, require industrial facilities discharging wastewater and wastewater treatment plants to conduct per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) monitoring, prohibit manufacturers from intentionally including harmful chemicals in playground surfacing materials, and support residential fuel switching. The legislation further advances the Senate Majority Conference’s commitment to protecting New York’s environment and natural resources and builds on environmental protection efforts from last session.

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “We remain committed to protecting New York’s environment and natural resources for both the present and future. I am very proud of the significant progress our conference has made in environmental justice, including the enactment of legislation from last session to ensure fossil fuel companies are being held responsible for their emissions and to close the carbon-dioxide loophole in our state’s fracking ban. This package will further enhance our environmental efforts with measures to continue lowering our emissions and support our state’s transition to clean energy. I am thankful to the sponsors in this package for championing legislation to ensure our environment remains safeguarded on multiple fronts.”

Chair of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, Senator Peter Harckham, said, “To continue serving as responsible stewards of our environment we must look for new ways that effectively safeguard our natural resources and help our transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. My bills helping municipalities with small lake associations to protect water quality and also allowing NYSERDA to assist homeowners financially when switching from fuel oil to electric heat pumps are both a real win-win for us statewide in both the short- and long-term. I thank Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins for bringing these bills to the floor, and I thank my Senate colleagues for their important contributions to the Earth Day legislative package as well.”

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Senators Involved

35th Senate District

40th Senate District

34th Senate District

41st Senate District

47th Senate District

48th Senate District

21st Senate District

13th Senate District

29th Senate District