September 19, 2016

Basil Seggos, Commissioner

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233
Bill Finch, Acting Executive Director
New York State Thruway Authority Administrative Headquarters
P.O. Box 189
Albany, NY 12201
Dear Commissioner Seggos and Executive Director Finch:
New Yorkers, and particularly residents along the direct route of the proposed
Pilgrim oil and petroleum products pipelines, have broad concerns about, and
growing opposition to these two dangerous pipelines.
As the state environmental review process moves forward, we, the undersigned
organizations, urge that the opportunity for public comment during the scoping
process be commensurate with the enormous scale, scope, and intensity of the
project and its potential impacts.
Because communities along the direct route risk being damaged forever, past the
point of ecological or economic recovery, we ask that public meetings be held in
each of the counties along the route, as well as a meeting in a community along the
bomb train route that would supply crude oil to these pipelines, and one in New
York City.
We ask for a 90 day comment period for the scoping process because the complexity
and variety of concerns requires residents and municipal leaders to undertake timeconsuming research associated with the proposal and the vast number of threats it
poses, including:

the pipelines proposed route (which keeps changing);

proposed drilling under or through 232 waterways;
economic, physical, and environmental damage due to the construction of
hundreds of temporary and permanent access roads;
air emissions and health impacts during the construction phase;
destruction of wetlands, forests, farms, and floodplains due to drilling,
potential spills, and the operating temperature of the pipelines;
impacts on unique cultural, biological, historic, and archaeological resources,
and,
large-scale impacts contributing to climate change;

It is critical that you initiate a 90-day comment period because only issues raised
during the scoping process can be addressed throughout the State Environmental
Quality Review (SEQR) process; the Draft Environmental Impact Statement is not
required to address new issues raised after a Final Scope has been issued.
Moreover, the vast majority of New Yorkers who would be grossly impacted by the
pipelines do not yet know about or comprehend the risks to their lives and wellbeing. The scoping process must provide adequate time and opportunity to engage
not only those along the pipelines direct route, but also Thruway drivers and those
who live in New York City and other communities threatened by climate change.
Because bomb train traffic into Albany would increase in order to service the
Pilgrim pipelines, those who live along the oil trains route also need extra time, and
a public meeting, to articulate this additional risk.
Because the Pilgrim pipelines would threaten the health and safety of millions of
people and bring cascading, cumulative negative impacts far into the future, we ask
that:
1. DEC make an extraordinary effort to maximize public engagement regarding
the scoping process, to make all the meetings and comment deadlines widely
known, beyond the usual methods, and to help the public understand the
significance of their opportunity to participate in the scoping process.
2. Ninety days is the minimum length of time for public comment on the
scoping process for these hazardous proposed pipelines.
3. Meetings be held in Rensselaer, Albany, Greene, Ulster, Orange, and Rockland
Counties, specifically in the cities of Albany, Rensselaer, Kingston, and
Newburgh.
4. A meeting be held in New York City, which has nothing to gain from these
climate-altering pipelines and whose water supply system will be crossed by
both pipelines.
5. At least one meeting be held along the route of the oil by rail traffic, which
would increase to service the pipelines (such as Saratoga Springs, Buffalo,
Utica).
If New Yorkers are not provided adequate opportunity to comment on the scope of
the assessment of this dangerous project, the well-being and integrity of New York
State itself will not be served.
Thank you for considering these requests.
Sincerely,

350Brooklyn

Clean and Healthy New York

ADK Mothers Out Front

Climate Justice

Agritech Consultants, Inc

CODEPINK NYC

Albany Bicycle Coalition, Inc.

Cody Creek Farm

All Our Energy

Compost International

Alliance for a Green Economy

Concerned Burlington Neighbors

Anchorage Farm

Concerned Citizens of Montauk

Appalachian Mountain Club

Ashokan Architecture & Planning,
PLLC

Concerned Citizens of Otego

Concerned Health Professionals of
New York
Concerned Residents of Portland, NY
Plus People Like Us (CropPlus)
Connie Hogarth Center for Social
Action, Manhattanville College,
Purchase NY

Athens Antiques
Athens Citizens Development
Committee (ACDC)
Atina Foods
Aytzim: Ecological Judaism
BeanCounters Unlimited
Bethlehem Ecodefense
Binghamton Regional Sustainability
Coalition
Board of the Unitarian Universalist
Congregation of the Catskills
Bridge Street Theatre
Campaign for Renewable Energy
Capital Region 350
Carbon Squeeze
Catskill Mountainkeeper
Center for Sustainable Rural
Communities
Central Park West CSA
Church Women United in New York
State

Coydog Vintage
Crossroads Brewing Company
CUNY Center for Urban Environmental
Reform
Damascus Citizens for Sustainability
Daughters of Wisdom US Province
Deep Green Resistance New York
Democracy for NYC
Dominican Sisters
Dominican Sisters in Committed
Collaboration (Amityville, Blauvelt,
Caldwell, Hope, Sparkill)
Dryden Solutions
Earth Day Initiative
Earth Guardians New York
Earthpeace

Citizen Action of New York

Earthworks

Citizen Science Community Resources

Citizens Energy and Economics
Council of Delaware County

ECHO Action

Citizens for Local Power

Elders Climate Action

Eco-Logic, WBAI-FM
Eco-Poetry.org

EmJay Cleaners

Last Experiment LLC

Environmental Advocates of New York

Environmental Justice and Social
Action Committees of the Unitarian
Universalist Society of Schenectady

Leslie Bender Open Studios

Environmental Justice Task Force

Esopus Creek Conservancy
Faith in New York
Fellowship of Reconciliation

Maetreum of Cybele, WLPP-LP

Manhattan Central Medical Society
Marathon Jewish Community Center
Mariandale Retreat and Conference
Center
Maud Rosie McLaughlin, LMHC

Fossil Free Tompkins

Mermaids For Microgrids

Metro New York Catholic Climate
Movement

Frack Action

Mid-Hudson Sierra Club

Frack Free Catskills

Middlefield Neighbors

Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement

Millennium Sunline Design

Freehold Art Exchange, Inc.

Mirror Records

Friends of Hudson

Mohawk Valley Keeper

FUREE

Mothers Out Front NY - Southern Tier

Glenco

Music for the Masses

Grail Climate Action Circle

National Ethical Service

Neighbors of the Onondag
Nation/Syracuse Peace Council

Food & Water Watch

Grassroots Environmental Education

Green Party of Nassau County
Green Sanctuary Committee, CCNY, UU
Hazon
HealthyPlanet
Hudson River Playback Theatre, Inc.
Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, inc.
Hudson Valley Dessert Company
Ida's Natural Toys
IMBY
In the Weeds Landscaping

New Baby New Paltz

New Paltz Climate Action Coalition
New York Communities for Change
New York Conference, United Church
of Christ
New York Interfaith Power & Light
New Yorkers Against Fracking
No Extreme Energy Extraction

Jeff Boyer Productions

John Burroughs Natural History
Society

Nobody Leaves Mid-Hudson

North American Climate, Conservation
and Environment
Northeast Organic Farming
Association

Kapiwolf

Northern Tuxedo Residents

Ithaca-SHIP.org

Association

Rivertide Aikikai

Nuts for the Rainforest

Rochester Defense Against Fracking

NY Buddhist Climate Action Network

Rochester People's Climate Coalition

NYC Safe Energy Campaign

Rockland Sierra Club

NYCLASS

Sacred River Healing

Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive
Hindus

OCPeace and Justice

Olive Defense Against Fracking
Orange County Peace & Justice
Orange Residents Against Pilgrim
Pipelines
Orr Media Company
OWSNYCGA
PaddleHead Boards
Pagan Environmental Coalition
Palaia Vineyards & Winery
Park Slope Action for the Environment
PAUSE - People of Albany United for
Safe Energy
Peace & Social Action Committee of
Cornwall Monthly Meeting
Peacemakers of Schoharie County
People for a Healthy Environment
People Not Pipelines
People of Albany United for Safe
Energy - PAUSE
People's Climate Movement-Capital
Region
Pippy's Hot Dog Truck and Catering,
LTD
PlantoSavethePlanet.org
Protect Orange County
Protect the Adirondacks
Ramapough Lunaape

Safe Energy Rights Group

Sane Energy Project
Sara Roosevelt Park Community
Coalition
Saugerties Democratic Committee
Save the Putnam Trail
SEnRG
Shadow Supply, Inc.
ShaleshockCNY
Sharada Persian Cats
Sierra Club Lower Hudson Group
Sierra Club Niagara Group
Sisters of Charity Federation
Sisters of Charity Global Poverty Task
Force
Sisters of Charity of New York
Sisters of St. Dominic of Blauvelt, New
York
Sisters of the Presentation of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
Solid Ground Farm
Solidarity Committee of the Capital
District
South Asian Fund For
Education,Scholarship &Training
(SAFEST)

ResistSPECTRA

South Shore Audubon Society

Southern Cayuga Anti-Fracking
Alliance

Riverkeeper

Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance

Rensselaer Community Action

St. Mary's-in-Tuxedo Episcopal Church

Sterling Forest Partnership
Stop NY Fracked Gas Pipeline
Stop the Algonquin Pipeline
Expansion
StopMCS
Strawtown Studio
Sullivan Area Citizens for Responsible
Energy
Sustainable McDonough
Sustainable Tompkins
Sustainable Warwick
Syracuse Community Choir
Syracuse Cultural Workers
The Healing Arts Studio Church and
Ministry
The Ramapo River Committee
The Wei

Tuxedo Silver Dollars Seniors

Unitarian Universalist Women's
Association - Metro NY District
Unitarian-Universalist Women's
Association
United for Action
Unity Dance
Ursuline Sisters of Tildonk, U.S.
Province
Ursulines of the Roman Union Eastern Province
UU Congregation of Binghamton Green Sanctuary
Veterans for Peace
Voters Occupy
Wallkill River Watershed Alliance
Warren County Green Party
Wellspring Forest Farm

Theater Three Collaborative

Thereforever Tattoos

WESPAC Foundation
West Branch Conservation
Association

The South Shore Democratic Club

Windrift Hall LLC

Thompson Organization

WNY Drilling Defense

Three Parks Independent Democrats

Woodstock Jewish Congregation

Tinker Tree Play/Care

ZAMO!

Torne Valley Preservation Association

Zen Mountain Monastery

TriStates Unite For Safe Energy

1026 Kings Highway, LLC

Cc:
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224
Matthew J. Driscoll
New York State Department of Transportation
Department of Transportation 50 Wolf Rd. 6th Floor Albany, NY 12232

Judith Enck
EPA Region 2 Commissioner
290 Broadway New York, NY 10007-1866
Jeffrey Zappieri
Coastal Resource Specialist
NYS Department of State Division of Coastal Resources
99 Washington Ave. Albany, NY 12231
Thomas G. Echikson
Federal Highway Administration Chief Counsel
Room E82-328 (HCC) U.S. Department of Transportation 1
200 New Jersey Ave., S.E. Washington, D.C. 20590-9898
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers NY Regulatory District
26 Federal Plaza, Room 1937 New York, NY 10278
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
3817 Luker Rd. Cortland, NY 13045