Beginning on Dec. 30, 2024, New York will implement a transformative law to address environmental justice and protecting disadvantaged communities from disproportionate impacts from pollution. The forthcoming Environmental Conservation Law Section 70-0118 prohibits New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) from issuing permits for new projects with any impacts that "may cause or contribute more than a de minimis amount of pollution to a disproportionate pollution burden on the disadvantaged community." This law has been coined the "nation's strongest environmental justice law." It also marks a significant step in ensuring that environmental burdens are more equitably distributed and that historically marginalized areas are not further compromised by industrial activities and development.