We enjoy a great luxury of being able to mould our world in whichever way we deem fit at a given time. This allows us to have experiences, which are hugely expansive across multiple disciplines. Amidst such a system, it’s easy to overlook the bigger picture, and we would unfortunately come to learn about it in the hardest possible manner. You see, human beings won’t really go on to make a judicious use of their power, and some ripple effects to emerge from the said failure will be devastating beyond anyone’s prediction. Paying rightful heed to the said cautionary tale, we will develop a concept of regulatory bodies that, as per the structure, would govern different areas in our lives. Now, while the concept, so far, has achieved some enormous success, it’s doesn’t mean there were no challenges along the way. For instance, if we look at the impact of a creation like technology, the caused disruption makes itself apparent quite aggressively. The regulatory industry, however, seemed to have befriended their chief adversary, and they are now actively pursuing a future where this very adversary can be used to deliver benefits on a global scale. New York City Council’s latest decision does a lot to confirm the new stance.
New York City Council has officially passed a bill that bans the combustion of fossil fuels in new buildings. The ban will reportedly get enforced through a phased approach, with initial embargo for buildings under seven stories set to be implemented by 2024. Once the said responsibility is fulfilled, we’ll see the council applying similar rules to larger buildings by 2027. It certainly sounds like a bold call, but the move was due since long. Building emissions are to be blamed for 70% of New York’s total greenhouse gas emissions, so cutting back on that can provide a highly viable damage control avenue. In fact, according to a recent study, the measure can potentially remove 2.1 million tons of CO2 emissions from the picture by 2040. It will fall equal to eliminating nearly 450,000 cars for a year.
The fight against natural gas emissions was actually kicked off when Berkeley, California, took the lead and imposed a strict ban on new gas hookups for cooking and heating purposes. With tech alternatives already available to undertake similar activities, New York and other US cities aren’t expected to miss out on a lot.
“New York City is taking a massive step off fossil fuels, paving the way for the rest of the state and country to follow,” Food & Water Watch northeast region director Alex Beauchamp said