This page is dedicated to Geothermal Borehole Drilling
Legislation, Policy, and Regulations.
DEC Advance Notice of Proposed Rule Making
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule Making (ANPRM)
for 6 NYCRR Parts 550, 561, 563, and 569
for Closed Loop Geothermal
On July 23, 2025, DEC released an ANPRM and Draft Scope for the Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) Draft Scope GEIS for closed-loop geothermal boreholes and closed-loop stratigraphic test wells deeper than 500 feet.
This release kicks off a 30-day public comment period that will close on August 22, 2025. The release is noticed in today’s State Register and Environmental Notice Bulletin (ENB), and the documents are available for review Mineral Resources Regulatory Revisions page DEC’s website.
Minerals Resources Regulatory Revisions
DEC held two virtual public meetings regarding ANPRM and Draft Scope for the GEIS for closed-loop geothermal boreholes and closed-loop stratigraphic test wells deeper than 500 feet.
Until the new regulations for closed-loop for geothermal boreholes deeper than 500' are implemented, we kindly request voluntary submission of a Geothermal Borehole Log to NY-GEO.
- NY-GEO will maintain this information in a database and make the information available to the DEC.
- This information will help in the development of appropriate regulations for deeper closed-loop geothermal boreholes.
- This will also lend continuity to the recordkeeping of deeper boreholes before new regulations take effect.
Note - the only geothermal technology addressed in the new law is closed-loop. Open-loop boreholes and any other geothermal technology deeper than 500 feet are still subject to the previous regulations.
Please note the additional request on the form that supports USGS Mapping.
Division of Water
NY-GEO - DEC Presentations
Handling of Drill Cuttings Geothermal Borehole Under Part 360 Series
Division of Water (DOW) sent an email to all NYSDEC-registered geothermal well drillers.
Many of you may have received the email directly from the DEC regarding SPDES - sharing with our members, just in case you did not receive:
DOW is developing standard procedures for the construction and operation of geothermal wells. As part of this process, DOW has developed a flowchart NYSDEC Geothermal SPDES Discharge Flowchart 6.20.25 to assist interested parties in navigating DOW’s discharge permitting process. Additionally, a new mailbox (SPDESgeothermal@dec.ny.gov) has been created to address discharge permitting questions relating to geothermal installation projects. Please get in touch with this mailbox for discharge-related questions going forward.
For other NYSDEC permits that may be needed for your geothermal projects, please contact the regional Division of Environmental Permits (DEP) mailbox where the project is located. A statewide listing of DEP mailboxes is available at: DEC Statewide Offices: Contact Information By Location - NYSDEC.
