30x30 in New York State, the United States, and Globally
30x30 is a New York State initiative that is a part of greater national and international goals of conserving 30% of lands and waters.
- Conserving Lands & Waters in New York State: On December 23, 2022, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation A.5390B/S.6191A which sets forth, in the state’s Environmental Conservation Law § 49-0113, New York’s commitment to support the national goal of conserving 30% of United States lands and waters by 2030 is in collaboration with a broad group of partners and stakeholders. The goal stems from the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
- Conserving Lands and Waters in the United States: In January 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14008 entitled “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.” The Order pledged to conserve 30% of United States lands and waters by 2030.
- Conserving Lands and Waters Globally: During the CBD meeting in December 2022, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was adopted by 196 countries, including the United States. One of the targets of this framework is to conserve 30% of the world’s land, water, and seas.
Draft Strategies for Conservation
To achieve the 30x30 goal, DEC and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) have developed the New York State 30x30 Draft Strategies and Methodology (PDF) while fulfilling the following objectives:
- Conserving lands prioritized through the Open Space Conservation Plan;
- Providing protections for water sources, sole source aquifers, and watersheds;
- Preserving biodiversity through habitat conservation and restoration, and means for wildlife migration, with a focus on endangered and threatened species;
- Expanding public access to nature and the outdoors;
- Including considerations of urban, suburban and rural natural areas, wetlands, and forests;
- Protecting food sources through farmland preservation; and
- Increasing climate resilience, including reducing risk from extreme weather events, cooling urban landscapes, and the prevention of erosion and flooding.
Public Participation
DEC and OPRHP released the New York State 30x30 Draft Strategies and Methodology (PDF) for public comment from July 1 through August 30, 2024. Public meetings were held on July 25 and August 15 where the state agencies presented a summary of the strategies and methodology (PDF) and answered questions from the public.
Written comments were accepted by mail or by emailing [email protected].
