The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is being used to block projects related to climate change, infrastructure, and housing in New York City.
New Jersey has sued to block New York City's congestion price plan, citing NEPA, claiming the environmental assessment was not comprehensive.
There's a growing desire among some Democrats and left-leaning researchers to streamline the NEPA review process.
Critics argue that NEPA has drifted from its original purpose, leading to excessive reviews that delay projects.
The need to reform the environmental review process is a bipartisan issue, but there are tensions between speed and protecting environmental values.
The Biden administration proposed a new rule under NEPA to speed up permitting for clean energy and infrastructure projects, leading to disagreements within the environmental community.
Environmental groups have varying opinions on the proposed NEPA reforms, with some supporting them to advance clean energy progress, while others fear they'll undermine environmental protections.
President Richard Nixon signing the Clean Air Act in 1970, part of what became known as the "environmental decade."
The environmental review process has “metastasized well beyond what anyone intended it to be,” Dourado said. “