ALBANY, N.Y. — Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced he was directing the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to promulgate regulations to phase out the use of HFCs, a group of greenhouse gas pollutants used in a wide variety of applications. The regulations would adopt the 2015 and 2016 changes to the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is abandoning under the Trump administration.
"While the Trump administration denies climate change and rolls back efforts to protect our planet, New York is picking up the mantle of climate leadership and forging a path forward," Cuomo said. "We are taking action to begin the phase out of the use of hydrofluorocarbons, and I encourage other states to join with New York and California to combat dangerous HFCs. In New York we believe denial is not a life strategy, and we will continue to fight climate change to protect our economy, our planet, and our future."