Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

New York to approve one of the world’s most ambitious climate plans

NEW YORK — New York lawmakers have agreed to pass a sweeping climate plan that calls for the state to all but eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, envisioning an era when gas-guzzling cars and oil-burning heaters would be phased out, and all of the state’s electricity would come from carbon-free sources.

US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks alongside Senator Ed Markey at a news conference about the Green New Deal, in Washington, Feb 7, 2019. New York lawmakers have agreed to pass a sweeping climate plan that calls for the state to all but eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks alongside Senator Ed Markey at a news conference about the Green New Deal, in Washington, Feb 7, 2019. New York lawmakers have agreed to pass a sweeping climate plan that calls for the state to all but eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Quiz of the week

How well do you know the news? Test your knowledge.

NEW YORK — New York lawmakers have agreed to pass a sweeping climate plan that calls for the state to all but eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, envisioning an era when gas-guzzling cars and oil-burning heaters would be phased out, and all of the state’s electricity would come from carbon-free sources.

Under an agreement reached this week between legislative leaders and Governor Andrew Cuomo, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act would require the state to slash its planet-warming pollution 85 per cent below 1990 levels by 2050 and offset the remaining 15 per cent, possibly through measures to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

If the state manages to hit those targets, it would effectively create a so-called net-zero economy, the ultimate goal of environmentalists and others seeking to slow the pace of global warming.

Many Democratic-led states have passed laws designed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, in response to the Trump administration’s sustained efforts to loosen or abandon environmental regulations on power plants and vehicles.

But New York’s bill, which comes amid a number of Democratic presidential candidates proposing net-zero targets for the United States, would set one of the most ambitious climate targets by a legislature anywhere in the world.

“This unquestionably puts New York in a global leadership position,” said Mr Jesse Jenkins, an energy expert and postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University.

The challenges of reaching such goals are daunting. New York has managed to reduce its emissions only 8 per cent between 1990 and 2015, according to the most recent state inventory.

There are also numerous questions about whether the energy, real estate and business communities could adapt by 2050 and how much it would cost to do so. Business groups in the state have derided the bill as impractical and potentially disastrous for companies forced to move to green energy sources.

The bill requires New York to get 70 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources like wind, solar and hydropower by 2030 and shift entirely to carbon-free power a decade later. But every corner of the state’s economy would need to become drastically cleaner, including industrial facilities, heating for residential homes and office buildings and the transportation system, including approximately 10 million cars, trucks and buses. THE NEW YORK TIMES

Related topics

New York United States environment climate change industries business economy

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to our newsletter for the top features, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.