NEW YORK CITY IS COMMITTED TO ACHIEVING CARBON NEUTRALITY BY 2050, AND WILL DO SO IN A JUST AND EQUITABLE WAY.
By 2050, New York City will have net-zero GHG emissions citywide. To achieve this, we will reduce our emissions as much as possible and offset our “irreducible emissions,” — those that are not feasible to eliminate — with projects that create negative emissions outside New York City. As detailed in 1.5°C: Aligning New York City with the Paris Climate Agreement, achieving carbon neutrality requires a shift away from fossil fuels. This means receiving electricity that comes from 100 percent clean sources. We will also maximize opportunities for energy efficiency in all buildings, and replace systems that provide heat and hot water for our buildings with efficient electric systems or other GHG-free thermal systems.
Carbon neutrality also requires getting more people out of cars and onto public transit, bikes, or sidewalks, and supporting the transition from gasoline-powered to EVs for remaining vehicles (see more in Efficient Mobility). Additionally, although waste makes up a relatively small portion of our total GHG emissions, carbon neutrality necessitates New York City achieving zero waste. It also requires investment in natural spaces that can act as carbon sinks within the city, the region, and globally to accelerate emissions reductions and address the sources of emissions that cannot be eliminated with technology. And although many of the technologies to make the shift to carbon neutrality already exist today, we will need lower-cost and more-efficient technologies for everything from air-source heat pumps to electric buses.
As we chart the steps needed to achieve carbon neutrality, we must ensure the transition is fair and equitable in terms of the cost and burden to people and communities, and that we create good-paying jobs and continue to support the economic vitality that enables us to make our city strong and fair. The City will have to act both inside our borders and at the state, regional, and federal levels. We must inspire all New Yorkers to participate in this ambitious, once-in-a-generation commitment in order to ensure a livable climate and a better future.
