Comprehensive series of locally-instituted actions to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050
The Battery Park City Authority today released its industry-leading Climate Action Plan, a detailed roadmap of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction strategies in the energy, transportation, and waste sectors. The Battery Park City Climate Action Plan, developed by BPCA through its consultant Buro Happold, an international sustainability consultancy, was crafted by calculating current GHG emissions for the neighborhood, as well as projections of how those emissions would change year-by-year through 2050. It comes on the heels of the newest report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change outlining the dire need for swift action to avert the worst effects of climate change.
“Our Climate Action Plan outlines how Battery Park City can achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, an ambitious goal that will be supported by practical tactics.” said BPCA President & CEO B.J. Jones. “While sustainability has always been an integral part of our mission, this plan goes a step further, outlining everyday actions for us, residents, businesses, and the neighborhood-at-large. At a time when many communities around the world face a dire need to address the effects of climate change, we hope our Climate Action Plan serves as a model on how to achieve and maintain long-term sustainability.”
“Many organizations struggle with making progress on their carbon reduction goals, it’s not easy. A key step to closing the gap between intention and achievement is having annual targets, which effectively serve as a ‘carbon budget.’ The Battery Park City Climate Action Plan provides that,” said Mike Stopka, Principal and ESG leader at Buro Happold. “BPCA continues to demonstrate an honest and rigorous approach to aggressive climate action with this work, and Buro Happold is proud to support them.”
“I commend BJ Jones and the Battery Park City Authority for envisioning and putting forth this comprehensive Climate Action Plan, detailing practical steps that the BPCA is committed to take to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050,” said State Senator Brian Kavanagh, who represents Battery Park City. “I am especially pleased that the proposal recognizes the importance of building retrofits and electrification in moving toward a clean renewable energy economy. While plans like this one will no doubt need to be reviewed and augmented as the years go by, the BPCA should be commended for committing to take decisive action now toward meeting our targets under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act and for helping to demonstrate that New Yorkers are serious about curbing the rapid destruction of our planet’s health and habitability that the climate crisis is causing.”
The key targets outlined in BPC’s Climate Action Plan include obtaining 100% of the neighborhood’s electricity from renewable energy sources by 2040. The Plan also points to a 99% reduction of baseline transportation emissions and commitment to making 99% of private vehicles electric-powered by 2050. Other goals to be reached by 2050 include:
– 47% reduction of fossil fuel use and a 79% cut in baseline energy emissions.
– 80% of local trips using sustainable modes of transportation.
– 75% overall reduction in waste sent to landfills – and 90% of organic waste diverted from landfills.
– 15% overall reduction in waste generated in Battery Park City by that year.
Modeling emissions through 2050 demonstrates that decarbonizing the grid and supporting renewable energy sources will have the biggest impact on reducing emissions, heightened by building retrofits and electrification. Expanding electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure and supporting EV adoption will have the most significant impact on reducing emissions from the transportation sector. Reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill is integral to reducing neighborhood emissions from the waste sector.
To ensure that Battery Park City can achieve its carbon-neutral goals by 2050, the Climate Action Plan also contemplates high-quality carbon offsets to counterbalance whatever reduced GHG emissions remain in 2050.
Acknowledging that such radical changes to infrastructure and behavior cannot be achieved immediately, BPC’s Climate Action Plan also provides incremental plans for implementation, with the first set of targets set to be achieved by 2030. A selection of the incremental targets for that year include:
– 70% of electricity derived from renewable energy sources.
– 100% of BPCA vehicles to be electrified.
– 50% reduction in landfill waste sent to compactors.
– 80% of Battery Park City’s organic waste to be diverted from landfills.
The Climate Action Plan is the first in a series of deliverables pursuant to Battery Park City’s ten-year Sustainability Plan, completed in 2020. Developed in consultation with a broad range of residential, local, and governmental stakeholders, the BPC Sustainability Plan provides the framework for developing and implementing a carbon neutral Battery Park City by mid-century.
Read more about Battery Park City’s sustainability efforts here.
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