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Dismissing the Queensboro Renewable Express would be an enormous mistake by the state in the face of Trump administration delays in renewable energy development.
In 1960, deep in the fight for civil rights, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached the virtue of persistence: “If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving.”
Like then, our generation’s campaign for environmental justice — the notion that our most vulnerable communities should not bear a disproportionate burden from pollution — requires perseverance. With much grit, organizations like NAACP and others have made steady progress, improving the quality of air, water, and life for millions of the most vulnerable New Yorkers.
But today, that progress is in jeopardy.
After decades of perseverance from organizations like mine, the new federal administration is rolling back hard-fought environmental protections. The president is pushing fossil fuels instead of the renewable energy that keeps my community — and the entire planet — safe.
We need state and local leaders to lead and protect our most vulnerable, such as the residents of the Ravenswood and Queensbridge houses in western Queens. This community is known as “asthma alley” because it bears the burden of most of New York’s fossil-fired power generation. New York’s landmark climate and environmental justice legislation — the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act — sought to replace that power generation with renewables. The first project seeking state permits to do so is the Queensboro Renewable Express, which will, once built, deliver enough clean energy from offshore wind to power more than two million New York homes and enable the city’s largest power plant to retire fossil-fired generation, reducing local emissions.
Unfortunately, the state agency reviewing the Queensboro Renewable Express is now questioning whether the project is needed due to the Trump administration’s delay in renewable energy development. Dismissing this important project and others like it would be an enormous mistake and waste precious time. It would also send a devastating message to other developers, signaling New York’s retreat in the face of federal opposition.
By dismissing the project, the state wouldn’t just be sentencing western Queens to more years of health-harming pollution but also dismissing a critical job creator for the community. Black and Brown community members who have long borne the health and economic burdens of fossil fuel-fired power plants deserve an opportunity to participate in the clean energy transition through new, good-paying union jobs in the expanding renewable energy sector.
This project is not just about reducing emissions; it’s about delivering economic and environmental justice and empowering impacted communities suffering from past public policy decisions. It is no coincidence that this land use was placed in a low-income area or that public housing was placed near an objectionable land use. By comparison, there are no major power plants in higher-income neighborhoods in Queens.
This project directs New York resources on the right side of history. That’s why Gov. Hochul must continue to stand up to President Trump and not allow New York to squander this critical time. The state must continue reviewing and permitting vital projects like the Queensboro Renewable Express so New York is prepared to hit the ground running and protect impacted communities when this dark chapter ends — and it will end. When sanity and science return to federal energy policy, New York must have shovel-ready projects like the Queensboro Renewable Express ready to go.
Yes, we are under attack in the fight for environmental justice. But New York must stand firm and, in the face of this assault, boldly declare: “We will keep moving.”
Natalie M. Patasaw is the Environmental Justice Chair of the NYS NAACP Conference, which has worked to advance the agenda for equality for more than 85 years.
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