ELR Citation: ELR 20070
No(s). 87 Civ. 4242 (MEL) (S.D.N.Y. Jun 28, 1990)

The court holds that the analysis and conclusion of a Brooklyn development project's environmental impact statement (EIS) were reasonable with regard to the effect of the project on air quality standards in the area. In its final EIS, the city outlined mitigation measures designed to offset carbon monoxide violations caused by the project. Because some sites in the proposed development area sra still violate the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS), the city proposed addtional measures to correct traffic congestion. The court holds that there is a reasonable probability that the measures proposed will achieve the NAAQS. The court relies on the methodologies used and the affidavits of skilled professionals to find the EIS thorough and complete. The court also holds that the city's failure to attain the NAAQS for carbon monoxide by the attainment date set forth in the plan does not require injunctive relief halting the project, since the EIS and the city's traffic management plan are reasonable attempts to achieve the NAAQS as soon as possible. Because the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found New York State's state implementation plan (SIP) inadequate and allowed the state time to revise its SIP, EPA's approval of the state plan may be challenged in the court of appeals after administrative remedies are exhausted.

[Previous decisions in this litigation are published at 19 ELR 20290, 20295, 21032, and 21037.

Counsel for Plaintiffs
Edward Copeland, Elizabeth St. Clair
Rabinowitz, Boudin, Standard, Krinsky & Lieberman
740 Broadway at Astor Pl., 5th Fl., New York NY 10003-9518
(212) 254-1111

Counsel for Defendants
Victor A. Kovner, Antonia Levine, John de Angeli, Susan Shapiro
Office of Corporate Counsel of the City of New York
100 Church St., New York NY 10007
(212) 566-3929