Legal Challenges to Lake Source Cooling

The Cayuga Lake Defense Fund is currently involved in a legal effort over Lake Source Cooling

CLDF recently published A Citizen's Guide to Water Quality Hazards Posed by Cornell University's Lake Source Cooling Project. This guide details possible violations of federal environmental law involving LSC, in addition to concerns already published by CLDF.

The Cayuga Lake Defense Fund and a top Albany-based environmental law firm are also continuing to assist 10 local citizens with a lawsuit which seeks to reverse a variety of approvals for the Cornell Lake Source Cooling project (LSC). The lawsuit challenges the actions of Cornell University, the Town of Ithaca, and the Ithaca City School District. An appeal was filed in April 1999 and is still pending.

Overall Basis of Cayuga Lake Defense Fund's legal action

CLDF believes that the Town of Ithaca and the Ithaca City School District have violated a number of required legal procedures in their approvals of Lake Source Cooling.

The Legal Basis

The rezoning by the Town of Ithaca

We believe that the rezoning for the site of the proposed heat-exchange facility was granted illegally, as approval was conditioned on Cornell granting the Town's request for long-term access to Cornell-owned lake property. In addition, four of the seven voting members of the Town of Ithaca Board have ties directly or through marriage to Cornell University. We believe that Cornell did not abide by its legal obligation to disclose these affiliations when applications for LSC were filed.

The subdivision approvals and the site-plan approvals by the Town of Ithaca Planning Board

We believe that the subdivision and site-plan approvals for the project were granted illegally because a Planning Board is not allowed to require a park (as it did in this case) for any subdivision other than a residential subdivision. The proposed site is non-residential.

The Ithaca City School District's Infrastructure and Easement Agreement

We believe that the Ithaca City School District acted illegally by approving a permanent easement across District property without a required voter referendum. 1996 Education Law prohibits the sale or conveyance of real-property and the expenditure of tax money without voter approval.

Will there be a challenge based upon environmental aspects of Lake Source Cooling?

In addition to its ongoing lobbying and awareness efforts, the Cayuga Lake Defense Fund is investigating all potential avenues for legal challenges to Lake Source Cooling. On December 15, 1998 CLDF released its Citizen's Guide to Water Quality Hazards Posed by Cornell University's Lake Source Cooling Project which details possible violations of federal environmental laws by the LSC project.

The goal of the Citizen's Guide and the current lawsuit is to overturn all illegal or invalid approvals of Lake Source Cooling. It is our belief that in view of the mounting information against the project, our local, state or federal public officials will reject Lake Source Cooling.


Prepared by the Cayuga Lake Defense Fund (CLDF)
For more information, Call: (607) 275-9054 or 272-7914 or email info@cldf.org

CLDF 1999