ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A state judge has dismissed two lawsuits challenging the state’s delay in finishing its health and environmental analysis of the potential impact of shale gas development in New York.
The suits were filed on behalf of the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York, claiming 70,000 members, and the trustee of the bankrupt Norse Energy.
State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says Monday that State Supreme Court Justice Roger McDonough had dismissed both lawsuits. Schneiderman called the decision “an important victory in our effort to ensure all New Yorkers have safe water to drink and a clean, healthy environment.”
The lawsuits claimed the Department of Environmental Conservation had abused its discretion in delaying completion of its environmental review, which began in July 2008.
