NEW YORK — A New York judge struck down regulations implementing the 2022 Freshwater Wetlands Act amendment in April 2025, reversing state oversight of more than 1 million acres of wetlands. The New York State Legislature passed the amendment to the 1975 Freshwater Wetlands Act in 2022, expanding the acreage of wetlands under the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) jurisdiction.

The regulations, which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, authorized the DEC to protect wetlands greater than 12.4 acres or those designated as of "unusual importance." Developers and business groups challenged these regulations in the New York Supreme Court, leading to multiple lawsuits that were consolidated into a single case. The court rejected challenges to the law itself but annulled the DEC's regulations, finding the department did not comply with the state Environmental Quality Review Act's mandate to identify relevant areas of environmental concern or adequately assess potential effects such as changing development patterns and urban sprawl.

The DEC opted not to appeal the ruling and is developing a new set of compliant regulations. Under the previous rules, the agency evaluated approximately 11,000 wetlands. Currently, the DEC has jurisdiction only over previously mapped wetlands and those meeting the 12.4-acre size requirement. Owners of wetlands no longer under the DEC's jurisdiction will receive a regulatory waiver for five years. According to Ken Pokalsky, vice president of The Business Council of New York State, "We thought the rule captured way too much property, and it gave high protection to what we think would be ecologically insignificant wetlands, which makes the property around them not developable."

Erin McGrath, New York policy director for the National Audubon Society, expressed disappointment with the decision. "We were very disappointed by the decision," McGrath said. "We would like to see the lapse in permitting be as tight as can be, but this is also a long process." She added, "Urban wetlands are very important, and they've become even more important as we're seeing the growing impacts of climate change."

Krista Spohr, an environmental program specialist at the DEC, said the ruling "kind of threw a monkey wrench in the works." She added that the department is proceeding cautiously: "We're taking it one step at a time."

Why It Matters

The decision alters the scope of wetlands protection in New York State, returning oversight of over 1 million acres to a prior status. The 2022 amendment was passed following concerns that federal protections were diminishing, aligning with a national trend where the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency reduced federal oversight of certain wetlands under the Clean Water Act. The state's move to draft new regulations indicates a continued effort to protect these areas; the DEC states New York has lost 60 percent of its historical wetlands.