Thank you for participating in the DGEIS public comment period!
Read the public comments that were submitted to New York State
In response to the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement, as part of the Public Comment Period, hundreds of local residents and numerous nonprofits and municipalities throughout the Hudson Highlands submitted comments to New York State.
Many of the questions and concerns expressed in these comments have not been brought to light, nor have they been given the public attention they deserve. To help better understand the questions and concerns of your neighbors, environmental groups and municipalities, we have compiled and uploaded many of the comments to protectthehighlands.org/documents.
It is our hope that these comments will resonate with you and encourage future public participation. The Hudson Highlands is a unique and precious area and it is our responsibility to provide and promote good stewardship and to protect the environment and wildlife for residents and visitors alike.
Comments by Local Municipalities
What is a Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DGEIS)? Why is it important?
A Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DGEIS) is a preliminary study that is required under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) for construction and development projects that have the potential to meet or exceed certain thresholds of impact on the environment.
The public comment period of the DGEIS represented one of the most important opportunities for the public to review the scope of the proposed project and contribute feedback. The purpose of the public comment period is not to solicit statements of support or opposition, but rather to raise questions and highlight inadequacies in the project application so they can be addressed, mitigated, and avoided as the project continues being developed.
How are public comments reviewed? What happens next?
New York State Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation (New York State Parks) is currently in the process of reviewing and responding to the statements and questions that were submitted during the public comment period. (New York State Parks is both the lead agency for the proposed Fjord Trail and the reviewing agency for the DGEIS—yes, you read that correctly, Parks is both the lead agency and the reviewer.) New York State Parks must review and respond to all substantive comments submitted during the public comment period.
Following their review, New York State Parks will prepare and submit a final Environmental Impact Statement (final EIS), which will then initiate a minimum 10-day period for the public to “consider” the final EIS. Thereafter, New York State Parks will issue either a positive or negative declaration for the final EIS. A positive declaration means the project is “approvable.” A negative declaration means the project is “not approvable,” which would necessitate New York State Parks file a findings statement to document the reasons for the denial.
To learn more about the SEQR process, be sure to check out “The SEQR Cookbook: A Step-by-Step Discussion of the Basic SEQR Process” (January 2019) and “The SEQR Handbook” (2020), both published by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.