Environment Action Committee
Environment Action Committee
LWVSC supports "Skip the Stuff" Campaign | NYS 2025 Recap of LWNNY Environmental Efforts | NYS Clean Energy Goals | BE EARTHWISE! VOTE with your consumer dollars to prevent food waste |
LWVSC supports “Skip the Stuff” Campaign
Discover Schenectady recently announced its participation in the national “Skip the Stuff” campaign, a voluntary initiative aimed at reducing unnecessary single-use items in takeout and delivery orders while promoting sustainable practices among Schenectady County’s hospitality businesses.
Each year, billions of unused straws, utensils, napkins, condiment packets, and other accessories are included in takeout and delivery orders—only to be thrown away. “Skip the Stuff” encourages restaurants and hospitality businesses to adopt simple, eco-conscious practices, such as:
- Offering plasticware only upon request for takeout orders
- Providing non-plastic alternatives for straws, stirrers, and utensils
- Limiting the use of individually packaged condiments
- Allowing customers to bring their own mug, thermos, or growler for refills
In collaboration with the Schenectady County Environmental Advisory Council, Discover Schenectady will identify participating businesses as “Sustainability Partners.” Those who join the effort will receive a “Skip the Stuff” window cling to display at their location and will be featured on the Discover Schenectady website as sustainability leaders in the community.
“We believe the Skip the Stuff program is a great opportunity for Schenectady County businesses to support environmental sustainability and show their customers they care about the community,” said Executive Director of Discover Schenectady Todd Garofano. “The best part is that it’s free to join and offers another way for businesses to promote themselves.”
“This partnership between the Schenectady County Environmental Advisory Council and Discover Schenectady highlights how grassroots action and community engagement can advance sustainability goals,” said Portia Zwicker of the Schenectady County Environmental Advisory Council. “Together, we’re making it easier for local businesses to reduce single-use waste and demonstrate their commitment to environmental stewardship.”
For more information on how to participate, visit here.
Nancy Tudor Chair,
Environmental Committee
NYS 2025 Legislative Session Recap of LWVNY Environmental Efforts
Despite increasing atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations and climate destabilization as a backdrop, environmental interests were largely snubbed in the 2025 NYS Legislative session that just ended.
Members of the four Capital Region county LWVs lobbied this year for four LWVNY priority environmental bills. Two were ongoing efforts from prior years -- the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA - S1464/A1749) that requires companies to reduce the amounts of, and remove toxins from, packaging, and also contribute to the cost of managing the packaging waste that remains, and the Bigger Better Bottle Bill (BBB - S5684/A6543) that expands the types of beverages subject to deposit, raises the deposit fee, and increases redemption center revenues. This year advocates also lobbied for two new LWVNY priority bills, the NY Home Energy Affordable Transition Act (NY HEAT S4158/ A4870A) that amends NYS law to align utility planning with the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act which requires an end to unsustainable energy provision, and the Climate Education Bill (S2430/A4876) that adds climate topics to NYS curriculum requirements.
The Senate passed PRRIA, and advocates had secured promises from enough Assembly members to expect passage in that body as well, but despite adding the bill to the floor calendar for the last day of session, Speaker Heastie allowed the session to close without bringing the bill up for a vote. BBB and the Climate Education Bill failed to progress in any meaningful way in either house of the legislature. Faced with lack of movement on any important environmental bill, NY HEAT bill sponsors introduced two related bills at the end of session -- the Customer Savings and Reliability Act (S8421/A8889), which represented an amended version of NY HEAT as a whole, and a separate bill (S8417/A8888) that repealed only the "100 Foot Rule," the requirement that ratepayers across the state cover costs for free gas hook-ups to building owners within 100 feet of a gas utility line. In the end, this small but important carve-out of NY HEAT is the only environmental priority bill that passed through both houses of the NYS Legislature.
Efforts are now underway to urge Gov. Hochul to immediately sign this 100 Foot Rule bill -- it will go into effect providing savings to ratepayers immediately upon signature. Efforts to gain passage of the other LWVNY priority environmental bills will continue into next year. A bright spot: since 2026 will be the second year of the current two-year legislative session, all bills will be able to build upon the progress they made this session. Significantly, PRRIA will be eligible to go straight to the Assembly floor when the 2026 legislative session begins in January. Why not spend the summer bringing this bill up in conversations, and find a few more people to contact Assembly members? It will be a significant treat to see this bill signed into law!
NYS Clean Energy Goals: Stick to the Plan
In the last five years, progress has been made across the country and in New York State (NYS) in the deployment of renewable energy, such as solar, including rooftop installation and large-scale solar farms, as well as onshore wind and the beginnings of offshore wind. While these results are impressive, NYS has a long way to go to meet the first sub-goal of 70% renewable energy as projected in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) by 2030.
There have been legitimate technical and logistical concerns, conservation issues, land use concerns, and conflicts which need to be addressed. NYSERDA (NYS Energy Research and Development Authority) is attempting to address these concerns. “Further confounding progress are fossil fuel- based organizations using inflammatory and, in many cases, erroneous information to scare residents into opposing large scale solar and offshore wind.”
With the first concrete goal approaching, naysayers are suggesting the State’s goals are unrealistic. They are saying things such as, “We cannot afford these goals,” “We need to go slower,” and “We can spend lots of money and not make a difference.” Others point out that we are in the midst of climate change with impacts and their costs climbing exponentially in the billions of dollars now. We need to move faster, not slower!
Climate scientists indicate that our efforts to slow down global warming will now appear to have little impact for the next 25 years because the forces are already in motion. However, climate scientists still believe we have a short window of time to ameliorate the effects. If we do not act fast to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the planet will be pretty much unlivable by the end of this century.
NYSERDA has a State Energy Plan that was published in 2015 with updates in 2020 to align with the objectives of the CLCPA. Since then, the Scoping Plan Report has been released, examining energy issues that contribute to climate change and offering recommendations that are currently being implemented by the State. NYSERDA is now beginning the process of working on a new plan and the public will have the opportunity to provide comments on the draft plan throughout the process. The final Plan will provide a 15-year outlook and will focus on strategies to meet future energy needs and advance decarbonization, while balancing reliability, affordability, environmental and public health impacts, and economic growth. We need to monitor this process, encourage speedy solutions, and support green energy bills which will speed up the process.
Governor Hochul has signed the Climate Change Superfund Act passed by both houses of the legislature. Bills for 3 billion dollars a year for 25 years will be going out to Fossil Fuel Companies who bear much of the responsibility for accelerating climate change through disinformation and lies to the public. This year, the League is advocating for the NY HEAT Act to be in the budget. The NY HEAT Act reforms Public Service Law, allowing energy utilities to provide clean energy options while protecting families from high energy costs. Here is an easy way that you can help: Email your legislators about NY Heat: Text NYHEAT to 52886.
Submitted by Joanna Lasher, LWV Saratoga County, on behalf of Capitol District Four-League Environmental Committee
BE EARTHWISE! VOTE with your consumer dollars to prevent food waste.
Food Waste constitutes the third largest contributor to global warming. Discarded food also wastes the water, labor, and fuel used to produce and transport that food. One third of the food grown globally does not get consumed. An estimated 40% of the food people purchase in the U.S.A. gets tossed. Annually, that amounts to $165 Billion and over $2,000 for a family of four.
More than 820 million people worldwide live with chronic food deprivation. Food insecurity includes the continuum from famine, hunger, food deprivation, malnutrition to nutritional deficiencies from eating empty calories. In America and New York State, one in every 7 people experiences food insecurity in one form or another. The 1 in 7 statistic varies from county to county. According to Feeding America, approximately 2.3 million people or 12% of New York's population experience a challenge feeding themselves and their loved ones.
Food insecurity can affect the people we interact with every day and we may not even know it: older adults living on a fixed income, the three out of four working Americans living paycheck to paycheck, college students living on a budget and our children. America has an abundance of healthy foods. By wasting less food, we can nourish ourselves and our neighbors and sustain the environment at the same time.
