Numerous critics condemn the insidious nature of Agenda 21. Usually the arguments are based upon the intrusion of the United Nations to mismanage the planet and reduce people to a sinister petri dish experiment. Their reach and methods used by this octopus that is strangling the globe, include specific actions that force their agenda down the throats of government entities. The recent passage of Article X in New York State illustrates a direct assault on the treasured principle of Home Rule. Connecting the dots and tying the links together forecast a grim reality that is ready to explode into a vicious turf fight.
The United Nations publication for Sustainable Development describes their objectives and announcements.
Agenda 21 is a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations System, Governments, and Major Groups in every area in which human impacts on the environment.
Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Statement of principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests were adopted by more than 178 Governments at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil, 3 to 14 June 1992.
The Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was created in December 1992 to ensure effective follow-up of UNCED, to monitor and report on implementation of the agreements at the local, national, regional and international levels. It was agreed that a five year review of Earth Summit progress would be made in 1997 by the United Nations General Assembly meeting in special session.
The full implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Commitments to the Rio principles, were strongly reaffirmed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) held in Johannesburg, South Africa from 26 August to 4 September 2002.
The video Agenda 21 For Dummies is an excellent background overview.
New York State is a "Home Rule" jurisdiction, dating back to 1923. New York Municipal Home Rule - Article 2 - § 10 General Powers of Local Governments to Adopt and Amend Local Laws, provides the authority for the cherished prerogative of communities to control their destinies. The stark conflict of local self-determination and the arbitrary imposition of bureaucratic fiats outlined in Agenda 21 are self-evident. Under the guise of streamlining energy siting and land use, New York State has jumped to the tune of the globalist marching band orders. In the darkness of midnight in a closed room, the new governor Andrew Cuomo pushed a secret version of Article X, and the legislature voted approval for the Power NY Act.
NY Senator Patricia Ritchie’s opposition explains the violation on Home Rule. Assembly representative Sean Hanna's passionate argument against this attempt to diminish Home Rule, echoes the sentiment. But, when it comes to lining the pockets of the latest robber barons, the role of corporatist power broker law firms, like Albany’s Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP, is quite evident.
The new Article X also makes provision for post decision challenges and imposes procedural and substantive limits on potential claims. The bill prohibits the use of intervenor funds for litigation purposes. It also provides that aggrieved parties must seek rehearing at the Siting Board before approaching the courts. Judicial challenges must be brought in the courts of the Appellate Division, bypassing the trial court level, within 30 days from the issuance of the Board’s decision on the application for rehearing. The bill also provides for deferential review under the "substantial evidence" standard. Finally, the new law largely divests the state courts of jurisdiction to determine any cases that seek to stop or delay construction of a generation facility that has received a certificate from the Siting Board.
The video of developer Ecogen’s Testimony before the NYS Public Service Commission clearly demonstrate how citizen participation is surgically removed from the rush to rape the land and bury the serfs under the cover of a green canopy. This example of a bogus Agenda 21 corporate welfare scheme to defraud the public and feed the greed of foreign plutocrats stands squarely against the property rights of individuals and local communities. The Wind Power Law Blog identifies salient elements in the legislation.
The famous (or infamous depending on one’s point of view) Article X, which provided for the streamlined siting of power plants, expired in 2003. The old Article X covered plants with 80MW or more of generational capacity. The new law should permit much faster siting of power plants of only 25MW or greater capacity. It passed both the Assembly and Senate with overwhelming margins.
Governor Cuomo styles the new law as "An Investment to Create More Power in New York"
Streamline the permitting process for power plants greater than 25 megawatts by creating a "one-stop" multi-agency siting board that will make siting decisions
Empower communities to participate in the process by requiring power plant applicants to provide "intervenor funding" for the community affected by the proposed plant to hire experts and lawyers
Improve the environment and public health by requiring the siting board to determine whether a proposed facility will create a disproportionate environmental impact in a community and, if so, requires applicant to minimize or avoid those impacts
The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund recognizes the inherent conflict in fast tracking unbridled and reckless land development exploration for inefficient energy projects.
We believe that we are in the midst of an escalating ecological crisis, and that the crisis is the result of decisions made by a relatively few people who run corporations and government. In doing so, communities must challenge and overturn legal doctrines that have been concocted to eliminate their right to self-government, including the doctrines of corporate constitutional rights, preemption, and limitations on local legislative authority. Inseparable from the right to local self-government - and its sole limitation - are the rights of human and natural communities; they are the implicit and enumerated premises on which local self-government must be built.
