Mayor Bloomberg recently announced that the city will phase out the use of unrefined oil sludge and the most-polluting grades of heating oil, to be completed by 2030. The new rules target the airborne fine particulate matter from two grades of heating oil that when burned by buildings create more than 85% of the city’s heating oil soot emissions. It’s expected that 10,000 buildings will be affected, as the black smoke billowing from smokestacks that the city says is responsible for killing 3,000 residents each year is eliminated.
Jason Schwartz of Policy Integrity gave testimony at a City hearing on heating oil regulations earlier this year, speaking on the billions of dollars in benefits that would be generated by switching away from residual oils to cleaner fuels. The city’s new regulations are a great start to realizing these benefits and cleaning up the air that New Yorkers breathe.