Big City Sustainability: New York City Paris Yates
The first city in the series of cities in my big city sustainability study is New York City; the big apple, with big lights, big business, and big attitude. New Yorks municipal plan for sustainability is a 150 page document that was commissioned by Mayor Mike Bloomberg. It is a comprehensive “PLAN” that is written and presented to New Yorkers as if they are stockholders in one of the world’s fortune 500 companies; CEO Bloomberg will lead them to exponential growth, high investment returns, and number one status in the big city sustainability market. The plan plays to the big dreams and ambitious spirit that have driven the city for the past century. It also addresses the problems that face the city now, and ones looming on the horizon.
The official title of New Yorks sustainability plan is PLANYC, and was published in the fall of 2007. It is the city’s action plan to sustain its resources, and adapt to challenges presented in the next two decades. The plan was put together by the Mayor’s Sustainability Advisory Board with help from Earth Institute at Columbia University, New York University, City University of New York and community input from people throughout the five boroughs. The plan has 10 goals it wants the city to meet by 2030: create, improve, ensure, develop, reach, provide, reduce, achieve, clean, and open. The plan also addresses what it thinks are the three issues that challenge the city the most: growth, an aging infrastructure, and climate change. The plan points out five key dimensions of the city’s environment and what should be done to maintain and improve them for present and future New Yorkers. Land goals: create homes for almost a million more New Yorkers, while making housing more affordable and sustainable, ensure that all New Yorkers live within a 10 minute walk from a park, and clean up contaminated land in the city. Water goals: open 90% of waterways for recreation by reducing water pollution and preserving natural areas, develop critical backup water network to ensure long-term reliability. Transportation: improve travel times by adding transit capacity for millions more residents, visitors, and workers, reach a full “ state of good repairs “ on New York city’s roads, subways, and rails for the first time in history. Energy: provide cleaner, more reliable power for every New Yorker by upgrading the energy infrastructure. Air quality: achieve the cleanest air quality of any big city in America. The plan also has a climate change goal to reduce the cities emissions by 30%. Global warming is a big issue concerning the city because New York has one of the most urbanized coastlines in the U.S. This makes it vulnerable to rising sea levels, and rising temperatures affect air quality and can produce smog and a probability of disease. The city wants to absorb 900,000 new residents in the next two decades and simultaneously prevent 15.6 million metric tons of greenhouse gases from being released into the atmosphere. The goals are well researched with every angle studied by all experts and every resident’s opinion has been factored into the equation. Although the plan is big, it is easy to comprehend and the implementation seems to be simple, common sense actions that have built and sustained the city throughout its history. The City has come out with a PLANYC progress report every year since the original plan came out in 2007. The report reads like an annual stockholders report that systematically lists the companies (City’s) assets and investments, and breaks down in milestone percentages where the is in achieving each goals of its plan. According to the 2010 progress report the city has met between 30-40% of its overall goal for 2030.
The sustainable actions that New Yorkers are taking are not revolutionary in the ideas or systems to implement those ideas: In fact, they are common principles of efficiency, density, diversity, and respect for the environment that has guided sustainable principles for millennia. The plan tells the great history of sustainable systems in New York, and how they have shaped the city and the world. It also stresses that in order for New York to continue to lead the world it has to make bold moves. Most importantly, it has to be willing to pay for these changes now in order to mitigate monetary and other costs in the future. Reading the plan was inspiring and made me a believer in Mike Bloomberg. He is the 11th richest person on earth who owns one of the world’s most successful companies and runs one of the world’s most successful cities. He knows how to get results and expects to see them in a timely matter. The only way to see the results of the plan is to visit New York and it’s communities. No annual progress report can show the impact true sustainability has on the environment and its people. PLANYC boasts to be the model on which all big cities organize municipal sustainable goals, and vows to continue to be the leader throughout the next century. In the coming weeks I will compare PLANYC to other big cities plans for sustainability and see the similarities and differences between plans. I hope other cities give New York the stiff competition it wants and needs.
Bibliography
The City of New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, “PLANYC: A Greener, Greater New York. The City of New York 2007, Web Jan10, 2011
The City of New York mayor Michael R. Bloomberg/ NYC Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, “ The City of New York Greener, Greater, Buildings Plan” , The City of New york 2007. Web Jan10, 2011
The City of New york Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, “PLANYC Progress Report 2009&2010” 2009 &2010, The City of New York. Web jan10, 2011
New Rochelle Press, “City presses ahead with sustainability plan”, New Rochelle Press 200-2010. Web jan10,2011
Web Pages: www.nyc.gov
climatechange.westchestergov.com
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