A new ordinance from the city’s Environmental Protection Agency (DEP) is raising the temperature for the owners of about a hundred pizzerias.
“We stand behind our miners and this coal combined with New York tap water is what makes our pizza possible,” Anthony Piscina said, adding that the filters required to less pollute could cost as much as $50,000 — more than half what was estimated by D.E.P.
The rule was to go into effect before the pandemic, but it was postponed. Entrepreneurs say that the cost to comply with the regulations could mean the closure of their small businesses.
“We stay open until 5 in the morning to see how much more we can sell,” said Frank Santora, manager of the famous pizzeria on Sixth Avenue, Grimaldi’s Pizza, where there used to be a church.
Businessmen share the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but indicate the final test on how feasible it is to install filters or give up wood and coal ovens will be left to the taste of diners.
“New Yorkers will have to tell us what tastes better: the pizza from before or the one from tomorrow,” said the manager of Grimaldi’s, one of the oldest pizzerias in the city.
But for those like the Mexican Ignacio Alcántara who spend eight or more hours a day next to an oven whose temperature reaches 11,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the conversion —even better than the installation of filters— can make the workday more bearable.
“I think it would give us a little less work; if it’s an electric or gas oven, it just turns on and that’s it. It takes more time to turn it on,” said Alcántara.
The Department of Environmental Protection announced that it would hold a virtual public hearing on July 27 on the proposed guidelines for commercial wood and charcoal ovens.
2023-07-06 21:31:00
#Concern #pizzeria #owners #regulations #affect #charcoal #firewood
