At Green New Deal rally, De Blasio tells Trump his NYC buildings could face $2M+ in annual fines

May 14, 2019

During a rally at Trump Tower yesterday, Mayor Bill de Blasio put the Trump Organization on blast as he promoted the city’s Green New Deal. Under the new climate change legislation, which requires large buildings in New York City to dramatically cut their greenhouse gas emissions, eight Trump-owned properties, referred to as “dirty, inefficient buildings,” would cause the Organization to owe roughly $2.1 million in fines annually beginning in 2030. The 27,000 metric tons of greenhouse gasses that these buildings pump out each year is equal to 5,800 cars. After being passed by the New York City Council on April 18, the law is slated to go into effect on May 17.

“Our message is loud and clear,” de Blasio said. “We’re tackling climate change head-on with NYC’s Green New Deal and are the first city in the world to require all big buildings to cut their emissions, with the goal of a carbon neutral city by 2050. President Trump – you’re on notice. Your polluting buildings are part of the problem. Cut your emissions or pay the price.”

As 6sqft previously reported, a report by ALIGN, a coalition of labor and environmental activists, found that Trump Tower uses more energy than 93 percent of the city’s large residential buildings. Across New York City, Trump owns at least eight buildings that do not meet 2030 emissions levels under the law. These include the Trump International Hotel & Tower, the Trump Building, the Trump World Tower, the Trump Tower, Trump Park Avenue, Trump Parc, Trump Parc East and Trump Palace. If Trump fails to clean up these buildings, he will owe approximately $2.1 million in fines every year beginning in 2030.

“In study after study, it’s clear that air quality in Manhattan is terrible,” Representative Carolyn B. Maloney said in a statement. “Old boilers, and porous walls, windows, and roofs that leak hot air in the winter and cold air in the summer, make buildings the greatest source of New York’s climate changing emissions. President Trump should be required to make the same improvements every other property owner is doing to make our city cleaner and more energy efficient. He may even find that lower energy costs will save him money over the long run.”

Reducing emissions from buildings—which are responsible for nearly 70 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions—is a key strategy of New York City’s Green New Deal. The bill is comprised of $14 billion in new and committed investments. In addition to the buildings mandate, these include initiatives to switch city government operations to clean electricity, ban inefficient glass buildings, and commit the city to carbon neutrality by 2050.

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