One City Built to Last

As of Sept. 2014, NYC is now the
world’s largest city making a public
commitment to lower its greenhouse
gas emissions by 80 percent
over 2005 levels by 2050. It is a
benchmark environmentalists say
could make a significant difference
in the plight of the planet. It is also
a benchmark analyst of industries
supporting green construction and
sustainable retrofitting consider
possible if the powers that be put
their money where their respective
carbon footprint would be otherwise.
“Climate change is an existential
threat to New Yorkers and our
planet. Acting now is nothing short
of a moral imperative,” NYC Mayor
Bill de Blasio said as he unveiled
the program’s lofty goals on Sept.
21 during Climate Week NYC as the
United Nations held its annual climate
summit at its NYC headquarters.
“New York City must continue
to set the pace and provide the bold
leadership that’s needed – and becoming
the world’s largest city to
commit to an 80 percent reduction
in emissions by 2050 is central to
that commitment. By retrofitting all
of our public buildings with significant
energy use in the next ten years,
we’re leading by example; and by
partnering with the private sector,
we’ll reduce emissions and improve
efficiency while generating billions
in savings and creating thousands
of jobs for New Yorkers who need it
most.”
It’s dubbed “One City Built to
Last” and even though it is de Blasio
functioning as the talking head and
most recently making the appearances
at the installation of solar panels
at the Kennedy Campus housing
seven borough high schools – officially
, where the carbon reduction
is slated to hit the city’s emissions
rates, it is NYC First Deputy Mayor
Anthony E. Shorris, who is in charge.
He is the city’s second-in -command
and in charge of the day-to-day operation
of city government and the
provision of core services across the
five boroughs. Yet, this new environmentally-conscious
and possibly
economically beneficial – at least
for the providers of the goods and
services required to make it reality –
program may possibly be what puts
the final feather in his decades-long
career as a municipal servant.
As protestors from every imaginable
environmentally-oriented
cause not only lined, but flooded
NYC streets for the People’s Climate
March, deBlasio joined in with
them promoting “One City” as the
answer to the Big Apple’s problems
and perhaps a blueprint for other
cities to adopt.
According to this year’s annual
Greenhouse Gas Inventory conducted
by city officials, nearly
three-quarters of NYC greenhouse
gas emissions result from the current
energy demand to heat, cool
and power buildings. It is a segment
of the city’s environmental problems
that deBlasio says can be fixed
by first retrofitting more than 3,000
public-owned buildings with energy-efficient
upgrades in the HVAC
system and installing solar energy
systems at more than 300 public
buildings. One City calls for retrofitting
to be completed by 2025.
City officials estimate the retrofit
project to result in a $1.4 billion
energy cost saving by 2025 with the
potential of the city experiencing a
savings of $8.5 billion by 2050 – the
One City target date for the 80 percent
reduction in greenhouse gases.
More importantly to the pocket
books of New Yorkers, the retrofitting
of privately-owned buildings
through an expanded partnership
THE SUIT MAGAZINE p.19