Clean Path New York
Clean Path NY Project Overview
Clean Path is a project aiming to bring wind and solar energy produced in upstate New York to New York City via a high-voltage transmission cable.
In 2022, New York Power Authority and Clean Path New York, LLC, a new organization formed by international sustainable energy developers, filed an application with the NYS Public Service Commission to build and operate the cable.
As proposed, the project includes roughly 180 miles of cables and associated facilities from Delhi, New York to Queens. Roughly 47 total miles of this cable will be constructed in the Hudson (40 miles), Harlem (6 miles), and East Rivers (0.6 miles).
Riverkeeper’s Role
Riverkeeper supports New York’s efforts to increase renewable energy generation and believes the Clean Path project will provide major benefits, including reducing New York City’s reliance on fossil fuels.
Riverkeeper is pushing to ensure that Clean Path minimizes impacts to the Hudson River ecosystem and surrounding communities, including making certain that the cable is buried deep enough in the river’s sediment to reduce the risk of anchor strikes and lessen the impacts of the cable’s electromagnetic fields on aquatic life.
Riverkeeper is also focused on ensuring additional coordination and communication between Clean Path and the Champlain Hudson Power Express (CHPE). The CHPE and Clean Path transmission cables will occupy the same 40-mile stretch of the Hudson River from the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge to the mouth of the Harlem River. Riverkeeper is concerned about the cumulative impacts of two transmission lines in the Hudson River, including widespread habitat disturbance, sediment resuspension, multiple electromagnetic fields, and the effects of concrete pads on the river bottom.
Through ongoing scientific, legal, and technical evaluations, Riverkeeper will continue to monitor the Clean Path project and share information with the general public and regulators to help reduce impacts to the Hudson River Estuary.
