As the city prepares to host the second climate summit bringing together the 40 largest cities in the world, its mayor has just presented an action plan aimed in particular at reducing GHG emissions by 30% by 2030.
Among the measures announced, many concern the energy sector. If we do nothing, the city’s energy bill will increase by $ 3 billion by 2015. We cannot afford to wait and we cannot afford to continue to be held hostage by the heat waves. , explained the mayor. This is why it is notably planned to commit 10% of the city’s annual energy bill to investments in energy saving, to create a local energy efficiency authority to set, monitor and achieve objectives reduction in energy demand from the municipality or to stimulate the renewable energy market by creating a reduction in property tax for solar installations. Above all, the city wishes to diversify its supplies by testing all possible technologies, in particular the production of energy from solid waste.
New York is also planning to release funds to analyze and list all of its polluted sites. This inventory will be followed by a progressive pollution control in order to free up new spaces. This land will be necessary to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of new homes that will have to be built in the years to come. New York also wants to recover polluted land to create new urban parks. Over the past five years we have added over 300 acres [ndlr : 1,21 km2] in the largest and best park system in the country. But two million people still live too far from a park, explique Michael R. Bloomberg.
On the transport side, the city is moving towards a policy of encouraging the use of public transport by developing new railways, new bus lines and improving the ferry service. Certain measures are also devoted to improving comfort and accessibility to public transport. To limit and improve car traffic, the city is notably proposing the establishment of a Manhattan entrance page which will be tested for three years.
Hybrid vehicles and other clean vehicles will also be favored in order to improve air quality while the city says it is ready to launch pilot actions on new technologies and new fuels, such as hydrogen. It is already planning to introduce biofuels into the municipal vehicle fleet. In addition, the city is committed to reforest 8 km2 of parkland and plant 1 million trees over the next 10 years.
The quality of surface water is also a major concern for the American city. This is why its action plan provides for improving knowledge of land use to better manage surface water and reduce overflows in treatment facilities during periods of rains. At the same time, New York wants to assess the vulnerability of existing wetlands and identify policies to improve to better protect them.
In a context of climate change, the city wants to anticipate and prepare. For example, it plans to create a transversal agency responsible for identifying and protecting its vital infrastructures. Adaptation therefore seems to be at the center of its policy, like the action plan which includes, for example, the updating of all planning and town planning documents with regard to climate risks.
Article published on April 25, 2007
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