The city’s air quality has reached the cleanest levels in more than 50 years, officials announced Thursday.
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The air in New York City may be the cleanest it’s been in more than 50 years, but the Department of Environmental Protectionisn’t stopping there.
The DEP announced new initiatives on Wednesday, including one that takes aim at one significant outstanding source of air pollution in the city: boilers.
A new requirement for boilers in large buildings will increase the efficiency with with they burn heating oil and natural gas from 80 percent to 83 percent.
“This common sense rule will help reduce pollution, make our air cleaner and residents healthier, and reduce fuel costs for building owners,”DEP Commissioner Emily Lloyd said in a statement. “By phasing out the use of the dirtiest heating oils and increasing the efficiency of boilers we will continue to build on the progress that has seen dramatic reductions in air pollution in New York City.”
Later this year, the DEP will present the City Council with an updated version of the city’s Air Code that cuts down on unregulated sources of emissions, like commercial cooking establishments.
It is also partnering with National Grid to purify and reuse the biogas released during wastewater treatment, a program it says could create enough energy to hear 5,200 homes and reduce annual emissions by 90,000 metric tons.
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